


What's a White Lie Between Friends (& My Family)?

by AnxietyAvocado



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Awkwardness, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gen, Morning After, Mutual Pining, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:20:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 24,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24114184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnxietyAvocado/pseuds/AnxietyAvocado
Summary: “Fine, but you’re not going alone,” Kyo said, fuming. “I’ll go with you.”“You? Why would you go? You have the social skills of a taxidermied cat,” Yuki scoffed. “If she wants to get through dealing with people, I’m the better choice. At least I have manners.”“It’s in June! Of course I’m going with her. That’s allergy season, you asthmatic rat. What are you gonna do, wheeze at her family? Besides,” Kyo turned to Tohru, “if I’m not there, who will stop you from tripping in whatever ridiculous dress and heels your cousin picks out? Yuki will be useless, it’s allergy season for crying out loud!”---Tohru's cousin is getting married, and she's been invited to be part of the wedding. She can't show up alone, so Kyo decides he's going with her. But when her family assumes they're dating, things are going to get very awkward very quickly.
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou, Kuragi Machi & Manabe Kakeru, Kuragi Machi & Sohma Yuki, Manabe Kakeru & Sohma Yuki
Comments: 72
Kudos: 219





	1. Error: Family Feelings Not Found

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is a fevered dream work in progress, so tags, character tags, ship tags, etc., so things may change as this progresses! Feedback and commentary are always welcome!

The envelope on the table, where Shigure had left it after that day’s mail delivery looked too formal to be part of their small household. It was out of place, with it’s heavy cream paper and an actual wax stamp sealing it. Tohru stared at it anxiously, almost as if she wasn’t sure if the envelope would bite her if she grabbed it. 

“Well,” Shigure asked gently, trying not to startle her, “Are you going to open it?”

Tohru shook her head. She could see Shigure staring at her with curiosity, and was sure that Yuki and Kyo - who had walked into the house behind her - were mimicking his expression. 

Part of her wanted to know what was inside of course, but the other part of her was too shocked by the return address. _Hiroshi Tanaka_. Her uncle. Tohru hadn’t heard from her family since she had left her grandfather’s house three years ago; after her grandfather had encouraged her to leave and be happy instead of putting up with her disagreeable relatives, she had gone back to the Sohmas and was sure that she would never hear from them again. She could never forget how they had accused her mother of having an affair at her own father’s funeral, convinced that she wasn’t Katsuya’s daughter, or how they had accused her of impropriety with the Sohmas years later. 

Blinking slowly, Tohru shook her head again and cleared her throat. “Please, Shigure,” she said quietly, “Will you open it for me?”

With a shrug, he took the envelope and peeled the wax seal off of the back. He pulled several card-sized pieces of paper out of it and scanned the top one before chuckling. 

“Well, well, well, it seems our Tohru has been invited to her cousin’s wedding,” he said dryly. 

There was a snort behind her, following by the rustling of fabric. She was sure that it was Kyo who had snorted, and that Yuki had probably elbowed him or maybe even dragged him out of the room. She would have turned around to look, but was distracted by Shigure handing her a small slip of paper out of the envelope. 

> _Tohru, please call me as soon as you get this! - Kaori_

The message was followed by a phone number. Her cousin wanted Tohru to call her? _But why?_ she thought. _We haven’t ever been that close… Although out of everyone she was the nicest to me. I wonder if she’s going to tell me that I don’t need to come, and that this was just a formality. I’m sure that’s it. My aunt and uncle probably don’t even want me there, they’re just obligated to invite me. Well, if I have to hear it from anyone, at least it’s Kaori and not her father. That’s okay! I can give her my well wishes this way anyway._

Paper in hand, Tohru made her way to the entryway where the house phone was. Kyo - who hadn’t changed out of his school uniform yet - was sitting on the stairs nearby, watching her curiously, and the shuffling upstairs told her that Yuki was probably in his room. He didn’t say anything, but she could feel the disapproval radiating off of him. Tohru didn’t blame him or try to tell him not to glower at her - she just picked up the phone and dialed the number. 

“Hello? Kaori? This is Tohru”

…

“Yes, the invitation came today. Congratulations! I want to wi-”

…

“What? I couldn’t possibly! No no no, really, it’s okay. Please…”

…

“Well, if you’re sure. You are? Then of course I will. Yes, I can call you next week. Um, goodbye!”

Tohru hung up the phone and stared at it in disbelief. _What just happened?_

The sound of footsteps broke her reverie, and Tohru looked up to see Shigure in the doorway, Kyo still sitting on the stairs, and Yuki standing behind him. They were all looking at her expectantly. 

“Well, what was that all about?” Kyo asked. 

Looking around with wide eyes, Tohru answered him quietly. “Kaori asked if I would be in her wedding, and I… said yes?” 

The room exploded into noise around her. Shigure started a monologue that seemed to be about the beauty of June weddings and the power of love, but was drowned out by Yuki’s and Kyo’s protests that she shouldn’t be spending time with _those people_ (“especially after the way they treated you” according to Yuki and “not without one of us there to protect you” according to Kyo) and how she had no obligation to do anything for her family after everything that had happened. 

“I told her I would do it,” Tohru retorted. “I’m her only female cousin, and she was always nicer to me than my aunt or uncle, so I’m going.”

“Fine, but you’re not going alone,” Kyo said, fuming. “I’ll go with you.”

“You? Why would you go? You have the social skills of a taxidermied cat,” Yuki scoffed. “If she wants to get through dealing with people, I’m the better choice. At least I have manners.”

“It’s in June! Of course I’m going with her. That’s allergy season, you asthmatic rat. What are you gonna do, wheeze at her family? Besides,” Kyo turned to Tohru, “if I’m not there, who will stop you from tripping in whatever ridiculous dress and heels your cousin picks out? Yuki will be useless, it’s allergy season for crying out loud!”

Shigure stepped in before a fight could break out. “Fine, Kyo should go with Tohru. But Yuki, you’ll need to take Tohru into town. You know how weddings go.”

The color drained from Yuki’s face. “No,” he said flatly. 

“Yuki…”

“I am not stepping foot in that shop again.”

“Do you trust him around Tohru without supervision?” Shigure grinned, sensing victory.

“.....Fine. But I’m bringing Kakeru and Machi. I’ll need reinforcements.”

Tohru looked at Yuki in wide-eyed confusion. “Reinforcements? For what?”

Yuki pinched the bridge of his nose in resignation. “To go see my brother.”


	2. On Today’s Episode of: Overthinking and its Consequences

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You know things are bad when Tohru burns dinner.

Three weeks later, Tohru, Yuki, Machi, and Kakeru - the last two because Yuki refused to be alone with his brother for more than two minutes - walked out of Ayame’s shop with a garment bag and two shopping bags in hand after her final fitting. Ayame had been effusive and exuberant, determined to give Tohru his “very best work”. In fact, his exact words had been that he “would make sure that no one in her family ever forgot how truly beautiful a Princess she was, and they would surely be green with jealousy as even the bride herself was sure to think Aphrodite had graced their presence”. 

In short, Tohru had some very pretty dresses and accessories and was now ready for whatever the weekend of the wedding would hold next month.

After a series of phone calls with her cousin, Tohru now had a list of everything that she needed to be prepared for during that weekend. Kaori, as it turned out, was marrying an American Naval officer who was stationed nearby and so the wedding was going to be a blend of Shinto and Christian traditions to satisfy the families of both the bride and groom (“As if anything could keep that family happy,” Kyo had groused in the background). 

The traditional invitations had been sent out in her father’s name, which had started all of this hectic business. There would be a bachelorette party, a ceremony at the local shrine, a Christian church ceremony, a reception, and - Kaori had hinted - one or two after parties for when the older family members had turned in for the night. Tohru couldn’t help but worry about getting everything done in time, and as a result had begun to spend more time than usual off in her own little world, worrying. 

_The wedding is the weekend before graduation! How am I going to study for finals and spend time with everyone, and keep the house clean? What about graduation parties? I know we should have one for Yuki and Kyo, but when? And oh, I can’t forget about Uo and Hana, we have to properly celebrate the fact that Hana is going to graduate with us! Of course, I didn’t doubt that she would, but with all the times she’s had to retake a test…_

Yes, Tohru’s mind was a very busy place lately. 

None of the Sohma men noticed it until, for the first time in three years, Tohru burnt dinner. 

Ever since Kyo had offered (more like insisted) on going to the wedding with her, Tohru had become even more self-conscious around him than she had been before. Of course she had always thought he was good looking, half the girls in school did even if they were too afraid to talk to him. But there was something about the thought of him all dressed up in a suit and tie, dancing with her at a wedding, that made Tohru blush furiously and wonder what on earth was wrong with her. Maybe it was the fact that it was going to be just the two of them going away for a weekend. She had traveled with the Sohmas before, but never with just Kyo. 

Kyo, who watched her like a hawk and insisted that she was too clumsy to walk and talk and chew gum at the same time, all while looking at her with an odd look in his eye - like she was about to break and he wanted to stop it before it happened. Kyo, who was so protective that he had practically dragged her out of her grandfather’s house when her aunt and uncle had said those awful things, who had run home with Yuki to spend the New Year with her, who was always making sure that she allowed herself to be selfish or be taken care of by others. 

Of course he would want to go with her, Tohru reasoned. She would be away from home and from people that she knew, and was going to see her family for the first time in years. It was only natural that he would want to keep an eye on her, right? He was just being responsible. Yes, that it was. She was just a responsibility. 

The thought, oddly, made her heart sink. 

Tohru was so lost in her thoughts, brooding about Kyo and why he had insisted on keeping her company, hadn’t noticed that she had washed the same carrot four times or that the pot of steaming vegetables had run out of water and was burning. In fact, she didn’t notice until the small smoke alarm started to beep and all three of the Sohmas ran into the kitchen shouting her name. 

Yuki grabbed Tohru by the arms and pulled her away from the stove and toward the refrigerator while Kyo, who had always been better in the kitchen than the other two, turned off the stove and quickly threw the pot into the sink by it’s handles where he dumped baking powder into the still smoking mess. 

“Miss Honda, are you alright?” Yuki looked at her searchingly, trying to feel for any burns or cuts on her hands and arms without breaking eye contact. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

The insistence of his voice brought the urgency of the situation home. 

“Oh, no, I’m fine I promise! I was just washing more vegetables, and must not have been keeping an eye on the stove closely enough-” Tohru faltered as she realized that all three of them were looking at her intently, and almost as if she had grown a second head.

“I’m so sorry! Of course I’ll clean up the mess, but I should go into town and buy more ingredients for dinner,” she insisted, teary eyed. “Dinner will be late tonight but I promise it’ll be delicious! Let me just-”

Shigure cut her off with a hand on her shoulder. “It’s fine Tohru. Clearly there’s a lot going on, so why don’t we do take out tonight? I’ll give you some money and you and Kyo can go pick up food. Yuki can clean up in here while I…”

“Don’t tell me you’re going to actually help in the kitchen,” Kyo said, startling everyone. He had been uncharacteristically silent during the whole exchange. “If you do, I’ll call Hatori and have him document the whole thing. He’ll need it as proof that you’re not totally useless.”

Shigure didn’t even bother looking annoyed at the remark, and instead handed Tohru an envelope containing some money. “Now, run along. We’ll do our best not to starve until you come back.”

\------

“What had you so distracted back there anyway? You could have burned the house down.” Kyo sounded annoyed, and Tohru’s stomach dropped at the thought. 

They were walking to the restaurant to pick up dinner - Tohru had insisted on going to pick up the food instead of having it delivered because she wanted to get out of the house while Yuki cleaned up her mess as well as avoid spending extra money on delivery fees. Kyo had done with her - ostensibly to help her carry the bags of food, but more likely to keep an eye on her. Tohru didn’t blame him; with how spacey she was this evening, she would probably get lost between the restaurant and the house. While they walked, she took time to think about her answer. 

“I guess it’s because of everything that will be happening soon,” she said slowly. “First there’s this wedding, and then graduation, and I want to make sure that you and Yuki have graduation parties, and then there’s Hana and Uo, and working all summer…

There’s so much that’s going to be happening! I just want to make sure that I don’t miss anything and that I make things as perfect as possible. It’s like the end of everything and the start of some whole other part of life. It’s worth celebrating, isn’t it?”

Kyo stopped in his tracks and looked at Tohru with wide eyes. “Are you serious? Tohru, you can’t make everything perfect. Is that what had you so distracted, really?”

She had stopped to look at him, but at his questions, Tohru turned around and kept walking, eyes trained on the ground to try and hide her flush. “Itwasbecauseofyou,” she mumbled quickly. 

The quick sound of footsteps coming up behind her told Tohru that Kyo had caught up with her, and a quick peek to her side confirmed that he was right there again. 

“You wanna run that by me again?” he challenged. 

Tohru sighed. She had always had a hard time expressing her true feelings when they were anything other than happiness or contentment or being helpful. But, Kyo had encouraged her to be selfish and do what was best for her. Maybe this was. 

“It was because of you,” she said quietly. “I was worrying about why you would want to go with me to this wedding. I know I’m clumsy, but I’m not that bad! Not really, at least. And I know my family isn’t the greatest, but you aren’t close with most of the Sohmas either so why would you want to make sure that my family is nice to me? You never let me help you with your family.”

She had expected spluttered denials or maybe even outright anger - Kyo had gotten better at expressing his anger without yelling or (where Yuki was concerned) his fists, but she hadn’t expected this awkward silence.

When had they become awkward? 

They spent the rest of the walk to the restaurant in silence, neither of them willing to talk about the wedding anymore. _Maybe he’s having second thoughts,_ Tohru worried. She would never force him to go with her. If he wanted to back out she could always ask Haru or Momiji to go with her. She almost said as much, but didn’t want to miss the chance to spend time with Kyo. Other than her sibling-like relationships with Momiji and Kisa, he was probably her favorite of the Sohma clan - although, if you asked her why that was, Tohru wasn’t sure she could answer that. 

It wasn’t until they were nearly in front of the house again, takeout bags in hand, that Kyo finally answered her. 

“Those people don’t deserve to even breathe the same air as you,” he said gruffly. “And I figure if they remember me from the last time, maybe they’ll be nicer to you.

Plus, Yuki can’t dance for shit.”

Neither of them talked about the wedding for the rest of the evening. As soon as they had walked into the house, Shigure fell upon them with over dramatic exclamations that they were saved from starvation before claiming several containers for himself and Yuki took his food and retreated to his room with the excuse of homework and student council business. Tohru and the two remaining Sohmas spent a quiet evening eating and watching television, and things felt normal again. What would she do when they all graduated? What would their new normal be then?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my personal headcanon that Yuki Sohma can't dance to save his life.


	3. Suck It, Bechdel Test

Hanajima, Uotani and Tohru had come to an agreement a few months ago - when Tohru wasn’t working, they got first dibs on spending time with her since she lived with Yuki and Kyo and they all spent lunches together with Hatsuharu and Momiji. 

On this particular Saturday, they had claimed her for a lunch date followed by shopping. 

While they waited for their food, they took turns discussing the tests they had taken that week, a new recipe that Tohru had tried, and strange customers that Uo had seen at work that week. But before long, they had run out of topics and her friends took the opportunity to question Tohru about the upcoming wedding. 

“I still don’t get why you’re even going,” Uo said between bites. “It’s not like those people actually give a damn about you.”

Tohru shifted uncomfortably under their gazes, unsure of how to answer them. Of course, if she was anything other than honest Hana would sense it, and it wasn’t worth the argument that would ensue when her friends would call her out on her behavior. 

She took a long sip of her water while she considered her answer. “I guess it’s because I don’t want them to pity me. I want them to look at me and see that I’m doing just fine without them, you know? It’s hard to forget what they said about my mom and me, or how they thought I was capable of doing such awful things. I just want to prove them wrong.”

With a sigh, Hana reached for her hand. “Their views, like their waves, are not something that can be easily changed. You may be headed for heartbreak if you continue down this path.”

“Heartbreak? C’mon Hana,” Uo laughed. “If our girl was in love, we would know. We would, wouldn’t we?”

“Of course we would,” Hana replied smoothly. “But family can break your heart too, Uo. You know that.”

They continued the rest of their lunch in comfortable silence, enjoying the food and simply spending time together. These were the people who knew her best, and Tohru was happy to be around them even if they didn’t always have things to talk about, or if their conversations weren’t always the most pleasant. 

Shopping that afternoon was much better. Uo had her eyes on a new skirt, while Hana had found some gloves that she claimed would complement her favorite dress quite nicely. For the most part, Tohru was happy to be included, especially as she so rarely shopped for herself and wouldn’t even know what to look for even if she was in the market for something new. More often than not, she saw something that she might pick up for one of her friends if they weren’t with her, or for Kisa or Kagura, or even Momiji, as was the case when she spotted an adorable plastic watch that had a bunny painted on the face of it. 

Uo held out a pair of silver and pink earrings. “Tohru, what color are you wearing to the wedding? Would these match?”

Tohru thought about it. She had several outfits for the whole weekend - there were multiple events and Ayame had insisted that she not re-wear anything during the whole series of events. 

“Well, Kaori has picked out red dresses for the church ceremony, and I have to wear a kimono for the Shinto ceremony. And Ayame made me dress for the rehearsal dinner and another one for the wedding after-party,” Tohru said thoughtfully. “Those would match the rehearsal dress!”

Hana took them from the blonde and held them up to Tohru, moving her hair out of the way to see what they would look like hanging from her ear. She hummed in approval. 

“You would need to wear your hair up to show them off, but those would look lovely. You should buy them!” Hana decreed. 

After some hesitation and going back and forth between three different pairs of earrings, Tohru and her friends decided on the pink and silver earrings for the rehearsal dinner, and a sparkly hair clip for the after party. Her jewelry was decided for her for the ceremonies and the reception, so that was all she really had to worry about. 

Although Tohru thought it was too selfish to spend money on jewelry for herself when she so rarely wore it anyway, it was nice to think of owning something nice for future occasions. Besides, she knew she could trust Hana and Uo to make sure she would look her best; it helped to alleviate her nerves about seeing her family again and wanting to leave them with a good impression.

Before they parted ways for the afternoon, Tohru hugged each of her friends in turn before they ended up in a giggling, tangled mess of arms and hair. “I really love you guys, you know that right?”

“Yeah, we know. Don’t go getting all sappy on us. And show them what they’re missing, alright? Make ‘em ever regret kickin’ you out okay?” 

Tohru sighed happily. “You got it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's a short chapter with the girls - sometimes you just need an afternoon out, you know?


	4. Don’t Travel Adventures Get Background Music?

Tohru and Kyo had been excused from school that Friday by Shigure so they could travel for the wedding on Thursday evening. Normally this would have launched Tohru into a worry-spiral about the work that she would be missing, but as they were nearly at the end of their high school careers the work had finally lessened. They were taking the train to Kyoto, where Kaori had booked hotel rooms for the wedding party (which, Tohru supposed, she really was a part of even if it didn’t feel real yet) - she had told Tohru as much when they spoke on the phone last week, discussing plans and dresses and makeup, as well as confirming that Kyo was coming with her. 

Kaori hadn’t seemed to stumble over that fact, especially when Tohru said that Shigure, as the adult in the house, had insisted that she not travel by herself. She told her cousin about how the Sohma’s were concerned for her safety, a young girl traveling alone, and that they took such good care of her that she couldn’t help but agree. 

“Hey, you ready to go? Hatori’s almost here,” Kyo called up the stairs. 

In her bedroom, Tohru rushed around trying to find all of the last minute things she needed to bring. She had her dresses and her shoes and jewelry, but what about her hairbrush?  _ Where was the hairbrush?  _ When she found it sitting on her nightstand where she had left it, Tohru stuffed it in her bag, grabbed her sweater, kissed her mother’s picture goodbye, and ran down the stairs with her purse and travel bag. 

“I’m here, I’m here!” she announced breathlessly. 

“Alright then, you two have a good time,” Shigure said from his spot at the dining table. “Make sure you call if there’s any trouble and someone can come get you. Come back to us in one piece!”

“Bye Shigure! Don’t forget, there’s frozen meals and some things in the refrigerator for you and Yuki to heat up. I left instructions on the cabinet! And trash day is tomorrow. And don’t let Yuki use the stove!” Her instructions were rushed as she pulled on her shoes and headed outside. 

She could see Hatori’s car idling out front while he and Kyo talked. Hurrying out to the car, Tohru stowed her travel bag in the back, and then said hello to Hatori with a quick hug. He accepted it bemusedly, which was par for the course with his interactions with Tohru. Hatori always seemed to look at her with confusion and amusement, as if her presence was something that he couldn’t understand but enjoyed anyway. 

“Thank you for the ride, Hatori,” she said brightly. “We really appreciate it.”

“Of course, Tohru,” he replied. “It’s the least I could do.”

The rest of their drive to the station was comfortably quiet. Hatori wasn’t the most chatty person anyway, and there wasn’t much that the three of them had in common. Sooner than she had expected, Hatori had dropped them off at the station, and the pair made their way to the platform to wait for the train. 

Although it wasn’t peak rush hour, there were still plenty of people at the platform. They found seats facing the platform they would need, and Tohru spent her time watching people. It was fascinating to see people going about their daily or weekly routines when they didn’t think they were being observed. Men in suits were waiting impatiently for a train to take them elsewhere, and Tohru spent time imagining where they were going and who was waiting for them at home. Women with small children and rolling carts of grocery bags waited for trains that Tohru assumed took them home to waiting kitchens and bathtimes for the small children, where they would soon be joined for dinner by their husbands, to spend the evening together before starting the routine all over again the next day. It was comforting to know that no matter what happened, the world kept turning and people’s lives kept moving. 

Her reverie was interrupted by a knock on the heat. Rubbing at the spot, she looked up at Kyo and frowned slightly. “What did I miss?”

“Think you can stay out of dreamland long enough for me to go get us some snacks?” he asked. “Remember, no spacing out when I’m not around.”

She nodded, determined to keep a sharp eye on their baggage while Kyo wandered over to a snack cart, occasionally turning around to check on her. After a few minutes, he came back with some disposable bento boxes, packs of Pocky, a handful of Hi-Chew, and some bottled waters. 

It was nice to sit there with Kyo, snacking and watching people walk by. As the platform got more and more crowded, more people took seats to wait for their trains, and Tohru scooted away from strangers, which meant scooting closer to Kyo. Their shoulders brushed and their elbows bumped as they ate, the small moments of contact making Tohru jump slightly. What was going on with her? It must have just been the new environment, she reasoned. Yes, that had to be it. She was just nervous about traveling, that was all. 

The speaker blared announcements, saying that their train was arriving momentarily. Kyo grabbed her hand and pulled her up to a standing position. He had both of their bags in his other hand while Tohru held a bag with their snacks. 

“Don’t let go of my hand,” he said insistently. “I don’t want to lose you in the crowd, okay?”

Tohru, who had flushed a violently bright shade of pink, only nodded and squeezed his hand tighter. 

As the doors to the train cars opened, people streamed in while a few tried to swim against the flow of people and leave. Weaving between them, Kyo pushed his way through with Tohru in tow and they found a pair of empty seats. He offered Tohru the window seat while he shoved their bags away under the seats, and slumped down next to her. 

“I’m so excited, Kyo!” Tohru gushed, bouncing slightly in her seat. “I know we’ve traveled before, but that’s always been to places that were owned by the Sohmas. Now we get to go someplace new. Isn’t it great?”

He looked over at her and raised an eyebrow. “What’s so exciting about a train ride? Not like we’re going to space or anything.”

“But this is one of the first adventures that I’ll be going on without Shigure or Hatori or any of the other adults,” she insisted. “I feel really grown up, traveling just with you. Besides, won’t this be good practice for when we’re adults and have to travel for work or something?”

“Yeah, whatever,” he said, yawning. “S’not that big of a deal though.”

Determined not to let his skepticism ruin her trip, Tohru dug back into the bag of snacks and settled in for the train ride. She was determined to look out the window and watch the scenery go by until it was too dark to see, and let herself enjoy feeling very adult-like as she traveled somewhere new for what she thought was a very grown-up event.


	5. It Is Wednesday My Dudes: The One Where Kakeru Speaks In Vines

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kakeru, for obscure reasons no one understands, enjoys speaking in Vines. Especially when he knows that it annoys Yuki.

“Hi, welcome to Chili’s.”

Yuki sighed. “Kakeru, we don’t even  _ have  _ a Chili’s here.” He looked over at Machi with the usual look of exasperation and pleading that he wore when Kakeru was in one of his moods. “Help me out here, Machi. Please.”

Machi, for all that her half-brother annoyed her, liked seeing him annoy other people even more. And besides, you couldn’t live with the guy without picking up a few references. She set her pen down, turned in her chair, and looked Yuki straight in the eye. 

“What are thooooose?” she deadpanned. 

Without missing a beat, Kakeru kicked his feet up and rested them on the table, pointing at his shoes with all the pride he could muster (which was a lot). “THEY ARE MY CROCS!” he shouted gleefully. 

Yuki looked at Machi, and then at Kakeru, back at Machi again, and then let his forehead hit the table with a  _ thump _ . These two were going to be the death of him. 

“We really ought to get this work done so we can head home,” he insisted. “It’s almost the weekend and I don’t want to have to come in on a Saturday.”

“It is Wednesday, my dudes,” Kakeru said, agreement in his tone. 

_ Breathe, Yuki. Count to ten. If you’re not careful, you might put Kyo to shame with that temper of yours. _ Surely, the universe was testing him by putting these two on the student council and then keeping them there. 

Instead of answering, Yuki looked out the window, wondering where his cousin and Miss Honda were at this time. He knew they were leaving tonight, and that he wouldn’t be home in time to see her - them - off, he wished he were going with her, but trusted that Kyo wouldn’t let anything happen to her - if he did, he would have most of the Sohma clan to answer to, with himself at the front of the line.

“Miss Honda and your cousin are leaving tonight, aren’t they?”

Yuki looked back at his colleagues, embarrassed to have been caught off guard like that. Machi, observant even when she was in a mood like tonight, wasn’t going to let him off the hook easily. 

“Yes, my Uncle was taking them to the train station,” he said absently. “But they should be back for school on Monday.”

“I look forward to hearing stories from their weekend. But in the meantime, we should get back to business. It’s a week until graduation, and we still haven’t reviewed all the applications for next year.” Machi handed him a stack of papers with an expectant look on her face. It seemed to say  _ get back to work, El Presidente. _ Well, he might as well.

Yuki sighed. This was going to be a long evening. “Maybe we should get some coffee. Or delivery. Or both,” he said wearily. 

Kakeru perked up at the sound of food. "Can I get a waffle? Can I please get a waffle?"

Yes, this was definitely going to be a long evening. 


	6. You Know What They Say About Assuming. It Makes an… You Get It.

With traffic, their journey was three hours from start to finish. But that three hours also included being exposed to a ridiculous number of people, being jolted and bumped around on a train, trying to get a taxi, and trying to get the driver to not screw them on a fare by taking them the long way to the hotel that Kaori had given them the address to. 

All of this was bad enough, but when Tohru started nodding off halfway through the train ride, Kyo knew this was going to be a difficult evening. 

Finally, the taxi stopped in front of the hotel, and Kyo - bags in hand - dragged a tired and distracted Tohru into the lobby before depositing her in a chair and heading for the front desk. He didn’t care if she was better at talking to people than he was - with the state Tohru was in, she would probably end up accidentally agreeing to some totally ridiculous charge that they didn’t want. 

“Hi,” he said shortly, eyeing the woman behind the counter who hadn’t even had the chance to greet him. “We’re here for the Tanaka wedding. They should have some rooms reserved?” God, he hoped he could get through this without any incidents or losing his temper. 

The woman behind the counter squinted at the computer in front of her for several long minutes before rooting around in a drawer for her reading glasses, putting them on her face, and continuing to squint at the screen. 

“I’m going to need to see your identification cards,” she said finally - apparently having confirmed that not all of the rooms were checked in yet. 

Kyo took his out of his wallet and slammed it on the counter before going to retrieve Tohru’s out of her bag and handing it to the woman as well. It was several more agonizing minutes before the cards were handed back to him, followed by two electronic room key cards. He only stayed at the counter long enough to hear the room number and ignored the rest of her speech, electing instead to collect Tohru - who was still half-asleep - and head to the elevator up to their room. 

Their room, that he was now sure, was a mistake, because there was only one bed. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he groaned, dropping their bags on the floor by the standard “hotel room desk” near the window. 

Tohru, by now, was awake enough to realize the awkwardness of the situation they were facing. She blushed furiously and looked around the room, at anything but Kyo. 

“I- uh- I could- um, you know,” she stammered, “I could ask for some extra blankets and sleep in the chair or bathtub?” Her question ended with a near squeak as her voice jumped at least an octave at the thought of sharing this room. 

Kyo slumped into a chair. He couldn’t let her do that! But he also knew that if he didn’t sleep, he would not be able to be held responsible for whatever displays of anger would ensue. And there was no way he was letting either of them sleep in the bathtub - what if one of them had to use the bathroom in the middle of the night? No, he realized, there was only one option. 

Without looking her in the eye, Kyo sighed. “What if we use the extra pillows to build a… wall. Down the middle of the bed. Would that be okay?”

Tohru practically squeaked as she nodded. It really was the only option that left both of them in good enough shape to get through everything that was going to happen over the next few days. 

While she pulled her dresses out of the bag and hung them in the closet, and neatly re-folded the rest of her clothes, Kyo called down for extra pillows and set about straightening out his own things by hanging and re-folding clothes as needed before flipping through channels on the television. 

She was in the bathroom changing into her pajamas and brushing her teeth when there was a knock at the door that rooted her to the spot. There was the sound of footsteps as Kyo crossed the room and opened the door, thanking the person on the other side for the pillows and closing and locking it again. Was this really happening? Hana and Uo would  _ kill her  _ if they knew what was going on right now! Not to mention the fact that she was probably disappointing her mother about seven different ways to actually agreeing to this!  _ Stay calm, _ she reminded herself.  _ This is nothing to make a show over. You can’t fix it tonight, but maybe tomorrow you can find some other girl in the wedding party that has her own room and ask to stay with her while Kyo stays here. This is just for tonight, and that’s it.  _

With a deep breath, Tohru resumed brushing her hair and braiding it, before folding her clothes from that day and placing them in her bag before opening the door. She put her bag at the foot of the bed, which now had the blankets pulled all the way back, with three pillows laying down the middle of the mattress. 

Kyo stood to one side, hand rubbing at the back of his neck. “Well, I think that’s the best that we can hope for if either of us are gonna get some sleep tonight,” he muttered. 

Tohru nodded in agreement, and picked the side of the bed that was closest to the wall, furthest from the television and the window. Sitting on the edge of it, she stared at her feet while Kyo moved around the room - she assumed he was getting ready for bed as well. 

When he had emerged from the bathroom, Tohru did her best not to actually look at him, and curled up on her side while he turned out the light. She could feel the mattress shift as he laid down as well, and pulled the blankets up for the both of them. 

“Well,” he said, voice oddly hoarse, “goodnight, Tohru.”

“Goodnight, Kyo,” she whispered. 

For hours, they both lay there, facing away from each other but unable to sleep, but knew they would never be able to admit it to the other in the morning. 

Facing the wall, Tohru took a deep breath and tried to steady herself.  _ Does he wish that I had fought harder to sleep somewhere else?  _ Tohru wondered.  _ I’ll never be able to sleep with him right there. What if I roll around in my sleep? What if I snore? Oh noooo this isn’t good. What’s going to happen tomorrow? Or when we go home? What if Kyo doesn’t want to spend time with me anymore? I wouldn’t be able to bear it… _

On the other side of the bed, Kyo lay on his side, arm underneath the pillow that was cushioning his head. His thoughts were one never ending loop of wordless panic and thrill, the feelings occasionally interrupted by one simple thought.  _ She’s so close… Shut up shut up shut up.  _ Yeah, it was going to be a long night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this house we stan two "denser than rocks" idiots who like each other but don't have the words for their feelings


	7. Family Is An Exercise In Keeping Your Mouth Shut

Friday morning dawned bright and early, with chirping birds and streams of light that showed the dancing dust motes in the air. 

Kyo hated it. Tohru didn’t, but she knew not to say anything about it this morning. Especially considering the fact that they were waking up in the same room, in the same _bed_ and didn’t know what to say about that. So she opted to say nothing at all after a timid _Good morning_ before escaping to the bathroom to brush her teeth, wash her face, and change into a sundress and sweater, steeling herself to face the day’s activities. 

When she emerged from the bathroom, she found that Kyo had already changed and had even made the bed. She was about to thank him when he swept wordlessly past her and into the bathroom and shut the door behind him. She flinched when the door closed. _He must be so upset,_ she thought. _This is going to be awful, isn’t it?_

Even so, she was determined to make the best of it, as she was all things in life, and took her purse and one of the key cards in hand. Tohru wasn’t going to let whatever bad mood Kyo was in ruin her morning. 

“Kyo,” she called. “There’s breakfast downstairs. I’m going to get some. See you soon!”

She didn’t bother waiting for an answer before she left.

\------

Kyo was supposed to be brushing his teeth. Or making sure he didn’t have bedhead. _Something_ productive. But instead, he was staring at the counter, hands gripping the edges so tight that his knuckles were turning white. 

_What the hell just happened?_ he thought wildly. What had happened, Kyo reflected, was that he had spent the night next to Tohru Honda. And he had spent most of the night lying on his side, doing his best not to accidentally roll over and touch her even though the idea was actually more tempting than he might have thought at first. And they still had the rest of the weekend. 

This was going to be a problem, wasn’t it? If he wanted to, Kyo knew he could text Haru or even Momiji about it, but it wouldn’t be worth the neverending teasing that he would get from them. He could also probably text Hana or Uo, but they would do nothing but threaten him with disembowelment or dismemberment if he even thought about touching Tohru. Texting Yuki was absolutely out of the question, as was Kagura. Hiro would laugh at him if the kid hadn’t already blocked his number, and Kisa might cry at the thought of anyone even coming close to hurting Tohru’s feelings - not that he would ever want to do that, of course. There wasn’t anyone he could talk to about this, he realized with dismay. 

This wasn’t the time to wrestle with feelings that he might or might not have, though. Tohru was downstairs getting breakfast, and probably getting torn apart by her family. It was time to go do the job he was here to do. 

\------

Breakfast was better than Tohru expected. There was coffee, which she avoided, and tea, fruits and pastries and cereals, rice, miso soup, grilled fish, and other more traditional breakfast options. She had a cup of tea in front of her, as well as a plate with fruit and a pastry, enjoying the Americanized breakfast options as well as the fact that she didn’t need to cook anything this morning. Although Tohru spared a thought for Yuki and Shigure this morning and wondered how they were doing without her there to cook, she was also enjoying herself. 

She was eating when Kyo showed up at the table with a cup of coffee in one hand, and a bowl with rice and grilled fish in the other. Tohru smiled at him as brightly as she could and opened her mouth to ask him how he had slept when she remembered that he had slept _next to her_ , and apparently more soundly than she had. She flushed nearly crimson at the memory and quickly closed her mouth again. 

The potentially awkward bubble was burst when Kaori entered the dining room followed by who Tohru could only assume was her future husband. When Kaori saw her, she waved energetically and made a beeline for her table. 

“Tohru!” Kaori’s greeting was more energetic than she had expected, and looked genuinely glad to see her cousin. “I’m so glad you made it. Did you have any trouble getting in?”

Shaking her head, Tohru answered, “No, no everything was fine. We got in late, but it wasn’t a problem. It was my fault - I needed to retake a test after school so we couldn’t leave as early as I would have liked.”

Kaori’s eyes lit up at the word _we_. “Sooo,” she grinned, “This is your guy, huh? Kyo, right? I think I remember you from a few years ago. You and that silver-haired guy definitely made an impression. Figures you guys would be together by now.”

At the same moment that all of the color appears to leave Kyo’s face, Tohru felt hers overheat with a blush and tried to get an answer out, but it only came out as stammered nonsense. Was _that_ why their room only had one bed? Kaori had assumed that they were dating? Tohru looked at frantically, silently begging him to say something before she choked on her own words. 

“Yeah,” Kyo answered lamely. “We got in just fine. Thanks for letting me tag along this weekend. I couldn’t let Tohru come alone, y’know? Wasn’t the decent thing to do.”

The rest of the conversation passed in a blur, and before they had to meet up with the rest of the group, Tohru grabbed Kyo’s hand and dragged him into a quiet corner of the lobby. 

“What are we going to do?” she asked, eyes wide with panic. “I didn’t say we were dating, I promise! I know we aren’t, and I would never- I mean, uh- I’m so sorry I don’t know why she thought that. But what do we do?”

Kyo took a deep breath and considered his options. “Well, you could tell them the truth. But then what would they say?” He paused and let Tohru think about the possibilities. None of them were good - and it was something that they would have to deal with all weekend. “Or,” he said slowly. “We could go with it. Pretend that we’re dating. If you want to, that is. It would save face with your cousin, and maybe make things easier on you.”

As much as Tohru hated lying, she hated her family’s pity and mockery even more. She knew that if she told her cousin the truth, everyone would know soon enough, and she didn’t want to deal with whatever comments she would get. Not to mention, it was easier to explain Kyo’s presence to people who didn’t understand her living situation if they just lied about the situation. Would it really be so bad to pretend to date Kyo? He was tall, handsome, protective of her… even if he did get angry quickly sometimes that had lessened over the years they had lived in the same house.  _ And,  _ a selfish voice said in her head,  _ he could dance with you at the wedding. You wouldn’t have to watch him dance with someone else.  _ The thought shocked her - where had that jealous thought come from? It was probably just the stress of the situation.

When she answered, she sounded shakier than she would have liked. “Alright, let’s do it. Let’s get through today, and then we can discuss rules, okay?”

Kyo grinned at her, and then wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Well then, let’s go,  _ sweetheart _ .”

Sweetheart had a nice ring to it, Tohru thought. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely need to work on the pet names here... 
> 
> Anyway, feedback is always appreciated!


	8. It’s not that bad. It’s worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tohru's aunt is still a raging bitch, FYI. Also, minor (?) spoiler-ish things if you haven't read the manga or done research on Fruits Basket. Nothing that hugely affects plot, so don't worry.

When Tohru had agreed to go along with her cousin’s assumptions, she forgot one key thing - she had never had a romantic relationship in her entire life, and to her knowledge neither had Kyo. It was a fact that was quickly brought to their attention when they had arrived for a tour of the shrine where the Shinto ceremony would be held. They should have, she realized, talked about things on the taxi ride over there, but she was too engrossed in the sights and sounds of Kyoto to even think about something like that at the time. 

They were walking along the path behind Kaori and her husband, not really participating in the discussion. Many of the wedding details had already been decided already, and during this ceremony Tohru’s only job was to be there as part of “immediate family” - and that was only because Kaori didn’t have any sisters. So she let her thoughts drift and left Kyo to his own musings, enjoying the scenery and watching the small knots of tourists roaming about. 

A cough at her shoulder caught her attention, and Tohru spun around to face her aunt, who she bowed to quickly. 

“I should have known you would have shown up with one of  _ them _ ,” she glowered. “Your father would be rolling in his grave if he saw you here with you- your-”

Three years ago, her aunt’s accusations had nearly broken Tohru’s heart, but now she tried to stand tall against her. It wasn’t easy, but Tohru tried to school her expression into something closer to neutrality than fear and clasped her hands in front of her to hide the shaking. 

“There is nothing wrong with Kyo,” she said as evenly as she could. “Just like there is nothing wrong with my living with the Sohmas then or now. And my- my parents would understand and want what’s best for me, even if you don’t.”

“Your mother was a criminal and a whore,” her aunt seethed. “Katsuya deserved better than her and better than whatever criminal’s spawn  _ you are _ . If it wasn’t for my daughter’s misgui-”

“Is there a problem here?” Kyo growled, voice low and threatening. 

The acid in her aunt’s words pushed Tohru back physically, rocking back onto her heels. Kyo was right behind her and she jumped slightly when she leaned back far enough to lean against him before moving to his side, her shoulder pressing into his arm. When she looked up and saw the fury in his expression, Tohru felt her stomach drop. Her gaze bounced between her aunt and Kyo, unsure of who would give in first. 

They stared each other down from across the short distance, neither willing to move, blink, or even breathe it seemed. Her aunt refused to answer, stubborn in her silence.

And then, Kyo did something that he had rarely done in all the years that Tohru had known him. He gently grabbed her arm and pulled her behind him, stepping between her and her aunt, who let out a hissing breath. For her part, Tohru was relieved, and seemed to shrink slightly, letting her forehead bob forward until it rested against Kyo’s back. She was so used to stepping between him and Yuki or him and Haru; it was a relief to be protected. 

“If you don’t mind leaving my girlfriend alone,” he said slowly, “I think your daughter is looking for you.”

The fading sound of footsteps on the gravel was all that Tohru needed to breathe deeply and relax, thankful that the encounter was over. 

Kyo whirled around and took Tohru’s hands in his, eyes searching her face intently. “Are you okay? What did she say to you? Why did you wander off like that?”

The whiplash of emotions and social conflict gave Tohru a headache. Closing her eyes tightly, she held onto his hands, happy to have something to keep her grounded. 

“I’m fine,” she whispered. “I was just looking at different things in the courtyard and she cornered me and said… awful things. About my parents.” Opening her eyes, Tohru looked at Kyo pleadingly. “Don’t say anything to her. It’s not worth it. Please, Kyo.”

Kyo’s expression darkened. “Fine. Let’s get out of here then. Church rehearsal is later, so let's take a walk. You shouldn’t have to deal with that crap.”

He didn’t give her much choice in the matter though, and took her hand in his, pulling Tohru along beside him as they left the shrine and headed out into the crowd. 

\------

They walked for a while before Kyo said abruptly, “If I’m supposed to be your boyfriend, I should protect you from stuff like that. You aunt shouldn’t be allowed to talk to you like that and upset you.”

He had a point. For as little firsthand knowledge as Tohru had regarding romantic relationships, that seemed like a basic “being a good friend” sort of rule, and one that she should have known by now. This wasn’t the kind of situation that she could discuss while walking though, so she pulled Kyo toward an empty bench. 

“You’re right,” Tohru conceded. “Of course I hope nothing else bad happens this weekend, though. Can we talk about rules now?” When Kyo nodded, she smiled slightly. “We should eat breakfast together in the morning. And if I don’t have to sit somewhere particular for the wedding, I’d like to sit with you during events.”

“No spacing out without me around,” he stipulated. “Don’t go wandering off, okay? I can’t help you if I’m not there. We should probably hold hands, but we don’t have to do anything else if you don’t want to.”

“Like what else?” Tohru asked. 

The flush that crept up his neck and toward his ears told her that he didn’t take the question as innocently as she had intended. Of course she didn’t mean things that were… private. Behind closed doors. Tohru wasn’t trying to ask him to do anything improper, and the thought made her blush as well. 

“I just mean,” she said quickly, trying to save face, “Do we walk arm in arm? If we sit together, are we expected to sit close? Should we dance together, or do you not want to?”

Kyo was visibly relieved by her clarification, his shoulders relaxing and his posture loosening slightly as he slumped down further onto the bench. 

“We can do whatever.” His tone was dismissive, and Tohru tried not to be hurt. “I’m not a great dancer, but at least I’m better than Yuki.”

Looking down at her feet, Tohru twisted her fingers together. This conversation wasn’t going exactly how she had imagined, but it was better than she could have hoped. It wasn’t like she expected Kyo to be excited about the whole situation, but she couldn’t help but feel a little sad that he seemed so dismissive about it. The more she thought about it, the harder she gripped her fingers. 

Kyo reached over and grabbed her hands, separating them so that he could hold each of them lightly. “I just don’t want you to feel like you have to do something you don’t want to do,” he said quietly. “I don’t have any expectations, okay? If you want to dance, we can.”

Just hearing that was enough to make Tohru’s heart soar, and she smiled at him brightly. “Thank you, Kyo! I know I wouldn’t be able to get through this weekend without you. Should we go get a late lunch before we have to go to the church? Hana recommended the most wonderful restaurant, and I think it’s nearby!”

With a small laugh, Kyo stood up and stretched before holding his hand out to her. Tohru took it gladly and they headed to the restaurant - if there was anything that could make this afternoon easier to deal with, it would be doing so on a full stomach. 


	9. The Fine Art of Herding Cats (That Aren’t Kyo)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I using Yuki, Machi, and Kakeru as comic relief, and a tie back to the rest of the Sohmas? Yes, yes I am.

School was absolutely unbearable without Miss Honda. Haru was irritable without Miss Honda to calm him or Kyo to pick on, Momiji was pouting, Hana and Uo even seemed incomplete somehow. Yuki would have eaten lunch by himself, but he knew that the moment he was spotted alone, the fan club would find him and he wouldn’t get a moment of peace for the rest of the day. That meant that his only option was to hide out in the Student Council room for as much as possible until he could escape to Shigure’s house. 

He made his way through the hallways as quickly as he could, trying to avoid the attention of his peers. There were one or two close calls, but he managed to slide open the door to the room in question, and closed the door behind him with a sigh. 

“Hey, El Presidente!”

_ Oh god, no. Please, no. Not today. _

Turning around slowly, he saw Machi sitting at the table, and Kakeru stretched out on the couch that was visible through the doorway. 

“Kakeru, Machi,” Yuki nodded, acknowledging them. 

Machi ignored him, continuing to work on what he assumed were notes for one of her classes, and Kakeru bounded up from where he had been laying on the couch, draping an arm around Yuki’s shoulders and pulling him toward a seat at the table. 

Resigned to his fate of missing out on an uneventful lunch, Yuki sighed and pulled his lunch out before arranging it on the table. Machi continued to ignore him - which seemed to be her default - and Kakeru watched him with too much interest. Out of the two of them, Yuki knew who he would rather talk to. 

“Machi, what are you working on?” he asked politely. 

“It’s nothing, just some notes for my math class. I could hardly read them, and if I want to pass I should probably be able to study them.” Machi looked up at him with a raised eyebrow, almost daring Yuki to question her. As far as he knew, she didn’t have too much trouble in class, but he didn’t feel the need to question it. “Today’s lunch looks interesting. Let me see what you have.”

“A KNIFE!” Kakeru shouted, grabbing Machi’s pencil and running around the table with it. 

Machi smiled slightly at the bewildered look on Yuki’s face. The longer Kakeru ran around the room, cackling like a madman, the wider Machi smiled until her shoulders were shaking. With her head tilted down, the curtain of hair shook back and forth. 

Yuki didn’t know what to make of the situation - was this a student council or a circus? He watched in disbelief as Kakeru’s laughter got louder and louder, as he started gasping for breaths between laughs, and for the first time in days, Yuki  _ laughed _ . 

His laughter caused Kakeru to stop dead in his tracks and stare open-mouthed at Yuki, before grabbing Machi’s shoulder and shaking her to get her attention. The three of them descended further into the madness as laughter subsided into breathless giggles that didn’t stop for the rest of the lunch period. 

“What is it with you and Vines?” Yuki asked eventually. 

Kakeru answered from the floor, where he had collapsed into giggles and still not stood up. “What’s better than this? Guys bein’ dudes.”

“What my idiot half-brother means is that this week, his obsession is videos that used to be relevant but are no longer culturally important in society,” Machi said pointedly. “He’s harmless, I promise. He just gets like this sometimes.”

“It’s ridiculous!” Yuki answered incredulously. “And probably the funniest thing I’ve seen this week.”

“Well then you clearly haven’t looked in the mirror,” Machi said tartly. 

It turns out Yuki was wrong. He looked up at Machi, and in the glass behind her he could see the shocked expression on his face.  _ That  _ was the funniest thing he had seen all week. 


	10. And Hell is Just a Sauna

Tohru was standing in the bathroom, brushing out her hair in preparation for the dinner that would be starting in less than an hour. Technically, it was a rehearsal dinner, but they had already been at the church this afternoon to walk through the order that everyone walked down the aisle, and how to leave the church at the end of the ceremony. She didn’t know why this was called a rehearsal dinner - after all, they were actually eating, not practicing eating. 

Ayame had made her several dresses for the weekend, and the dress for tonight’s dinner was exquisite. All of them were, but seeing the dress again took Tohru’s breath away. When Ayame had shown her the sketch of the dress, Tohru could never imagine something so beautiful. The skirt flared out just slightly and ended just below her knees, and it looked like something that a classic movie star would wear. It was all pale pink and there were cherry blossoms painted all along the bottom. It was  _ wonderful _ . 

As she finished brushing her hair and pulling half of it up and away from her face, Tohru couldn’t help but stare at the dress. It was easily the fanciest thing she had ever worn or owned. Not to mention, Hana and Uo had done a great job helping her pick out earrings. They were sparkly and had little bits that hung down and moved when she turned her head - being all dressed up like this made her feel very grown up. 

“I’m almost ready!” she called - the door to the rest of the hotel room was open, so Tohru was sure that Kyo would hear her. 

“As long as we’re not late, take as long as you want,” Kyo said absentmindedly. He was sitting on the bed flipping through television channels before settling on some ridiculous Mogeta rerun. 

The longer Tohru stood there, the more she worried over her appearance. Was the dress too grown up? Did she have enough makeup on? Were the earrings too much? Each additional minute added to the doubts in her mind. With a sigh, she pulled on her high heels (not high enough that she would trip and break something, Ayame promised) and stepped into the entryway of their room. 

“Well… I guess I’m ready?” Wringing her hands, Tohru waited for Kyo to tell her that she was going to trip, or that she was wearing too much makeup, or something else equally critical. 

Instead, she was met with slack jawed silence. It took him several minutes to collect himself, and during that time Tohru looked intently at the floor, becoming more and more embarrassed as time went on. 

“Is something wrong?” she mumbled. “It was all Ayame’s idea, but I could always change if this is too much…” Tohru trailed off, trying not to let her emotions get the best of her. 

Kyo shook his head. “No, it’s great. You’re great. It’s just fancier than what you usually wear. You ready?” 

He didn’t really wait for an answer before pocketing the room key and sweeping past Tohru to open the door for her. With a small noise of alarm, she followed him and they made their way out of the room and down the hallway to the elevator. 

On the short ride down to the restaurant on the ground floor, Tohru kept sneaking looks at Kyo. He was wearing black slacks and a black button down shirt, hands shoved in his pockets as he watched the numbers count down. He looked very handsome tonight, she noted, and just as grumpy as he always did. 

Leaning over, she nudged his arm with her shoulder. “It’s just a rehearsal dinner you know.”

“Yeah,” he grumbled. “And hell is just a sauna.”

\------

It really was just a dinner - one with speeches and toasts and a lot of what Kyo had noted under his breath was gratuitous ass-kissing on behalf of Tohru’s aunt and uncle. Having no frame of reference, Tohru shrugged and decided that it was fun anyway, especially because it meant that she got to see so many new people. 

The best part about the dinner was that they were seated with Tohru’s grandfather. She was so happy to see him again, she could hardly contain it! Tohru didn’t mind that they weren’t seated with the rest of the family, because it means that she and Kyo got to relax away from the spotlight. It means that they could relax the “dating” routine… and yet, Tohru discovered that she didn’t want to. 

Even though it had only been a day, Tohru was already comfortable with “dating” Kyo. It felt like it was an extension of their relationship already. Sitting there, watching him talk to her grandfather, laughing about some story that her grandfather was telling, filled her heart with such happiness that she couldn’t contain it. Tohru tried to cover her giggle with her fingertips, but judging by the looks both men gave her, she hadn’t succeeded. 

“What’s so funny?” Kyo asked with a wry grin.

“It’s just so nice,” she replied sweetly, “Seeing you with my grandfather. Like you two have always known each other. I should have known you would get along with him.”

His quizzical glance spurred her on. “You were already on such good terms with my mother, it makes sense that you would get along with my grandfather too. He understood her in a way that others didn’t, just like my father. It all makes sense.”

Luckily for Tohru, Kyo didn’t question her any further, just gave her a soft smile and went back to the meal in front of him. That gave her time to observe him as subtly as she could - which wasn’t very, if she was being honest. Sitting there in the dim light, making conversation with the only blood family that she considered important that she had left, giving up his time to travel with her and keep her in one piece and safe… They had been close for years, why hadn’t she realized this sooner? Kyo - sweet, gruff, protective Kyo… Who made sure that she was in one piece, and that she was taking care of herself and allowing herself to be selfish, who kept her grounded… 

It didn’t hit her like a ton of bricks. It wasn’t even like a lightbulb going off. It was more like cleaning a pair of glasses, and realizing that she hadn’t been seeing clearly until now. Tohru was in like (maybe love?) with Kyo. 

The biggest problem with this realization was that Tohru was sure that Kyo didn’t like her, let alone love her. The happiness and warmth that had blossomed in her chest withered quickly with this realization, and the knowledge that Tohru would have to continue to pretend to date Kyo while actually having feelings for him. 

At the end of the dinner, they walked out hand in hand toward the elevator to head up to their room. Tohru kept her head held high and a smile on her face as she wished other wedding participants and guests a good night, acting every part the adoring girlfriend as she rest her head on Kyo’s arm while they waited for the elevator. She did, couldn’t, look at him while they waited, and once in the elevator she leaned her head back and closed her eyes, electing to pretend to be more tired than she actually was. 

When they made it into the room, Tohru dropped Kyo’s hand as gently as she could and headed into the bathroom to get ready for bed before he could ask her what was wrong if he had noticed. As she brushed out her hair and washed her face, Tohru reveled in the warmth and happiness of earlier, before it had come crashing down around her. She didn’t want to think about that. She only wanted happy thoughts tonight. 


	11. Things Have to Get Worse Before They Get Better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CONTENT WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER. There is an attempted assault, so if you would rather skip this chapter, I don't blame you!   
> Nothing actually happens, everyone is safe, everything ends okay, but if that sort of scenario is triggering for you I want you to be careful!

The day was a whirlwind of emotions and activity. The ceremony at the Shinto shrine that morning was beautiful and moving, calling on traditions that Tohru was sure generations of her family had witnessed before her. It was humbling to feel so connected to the family that she would never know. Standing next to her grandfather, representing the small Honda family, Tohru was proud to take part in this ceremony.

If she were to share her honest opinion, though, the Western style ceremony in the afternoon was much more fun. Dressed up in her floor-length red dress with her heels (Kyo eyed them nervously as she pulled them on before they left for the ceremony) she was feeling very confident and put together. But with so many other things over the weekend, the good feeling just wasn’t meant to last. 

The first problem was the groomsman that she was walking down the aisle with - though, if she was being honest with herself that was the first and the second problem. He was either horribly drunk still from the night before, or was hungover and smelled like alcohol still… It was disgusting. Until she had to lower her small bouquet to a proper level to walk down the aisle, Tohru did her best to keep it near her face to try and offset the smell. The second problem was that - drunk or hungover - the groomsman that she was paired with wouldn’t stop saying awful things to her. 

All during the time that they were lined up in the entrance of the church and most of the walk down the aisle, he kept up a constant stream of filthy commentary that made Tohru blush and then blanch in turn. She kept a quivering smile on her face as she walked toward the front of the church and tried to ignore the disgusting things that he said he wanted to do to her, aware that she wouldn’t be able to escape his attentions as soon as she wanted. All Tohru wanted to do was bolt down the aisle, to the side of the church she was meant to stand on. Either that, or to run to Kyo and beg him to take her home. Through all of it, she kept telling herself that Kaori didn’t deserve to have her big day ruined because Tohru couldn’t handle a few gross comments, and that everything would be okay. 

The third problem was… Well, not really a problem outside of Tohru’s own head - and heart. And that wasn’t something that she wanted to focus on, especially on what should be such a happy day that she should be thankful to be a part of. 

\------

The wedding reception, at least, was a welcome distraction. It was loud, and at first Tohru couldn’t even find Kyo in the crowd she was so busy meeting new people. There were so many new faces, and the whirlwind of activity kept a smile on her face. Kaori’s husband had invited many of his military friends, and even though she could only understand a few of them, they were all very funny and were excited to talk to her and the other guests. 

When she was finally able to join her table, Tohru was so breathless with laughter that she hardly noticed the odd expression on Kyo’s face. It took her several minutes and a glass of water or two before she was calm enough to realize that something was off. 

“Kyo, what’s wrong? Are you alright?” she asked fretfully. “Was it my aunt again? Oh, I’m so sorry-”

With a jerk of his head, Kyo cut her off. “It’s not that,” he said brusquely. “I just didn’t think you would be so…” he made a vague gesture with his hand. 

“So what?” Tohru asked. 

“So comfortable with people,” Kyo grumbled. “How come you’re not like this at home?”

Tohru considered her answer. She had always felt awkward around new people, always wanted to make a good impression, and had spent a long time being awkward and formal around the Sohmas. For the longest time, she couldn’t help but apologize for everything - a habit that she still had trouble with - and tried to live up to the expectations she put on herself and that she thought others had. 

“I think it’s because of you,” she said thoughtfully. “Because is your family I mean. You’ve helped me become a stronger person. I used to spend all this time wondering if I was annoying people, or if I was in the way, and how I could make their lives easier. But you taught me that I can be selfish and do things I want, and Yuki and Shigure and the rest of your family have taught me important things too.”

That was far more honest than Tohru had planned on being, and she flushed at how open she was. It was probably a mistake, putting more into their relationship - friendship, she reminded herself - than she should. But it was the truth, and honesty was something that she valued, even at the expense of her own feelings or comfort. 

Just then, the groomsman that she had been assigned to was approaching the table, weaving between chairs and knots of chatting guests. He was smiling at her, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes; instead, it left her feeling cold. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, if the wedding party could please head toward the dance floor, let’s get this party started!” a voice boomed over the crowd. She had to dance? With him? Tohru looked around, eyes wide as she started to panic. She didn’t remember agreeing to this, but there was no way to avoid it without causing a scene. With one last, slightly panicked, look at Kyo she took the other man’s offered hand and followed him out to the dance floor. 

It wasn’t anything complicated - just a fairly slow song that she could get away dancing to without having to do too much moving, which was good considering she wasn’t sure about dancing in these shoes. She had planned on going barefoot for that, but hadn’t had the chance to get rid of the heels just yet and now was beginning to regret it. 

As the song ended, Tohru tried to pull away, but the man had a stronger hold on her waist than she had realized, and pulled her back for another song, and then a third one. The music was so loud that she was sure he couldn’t hear her protests, and he was too busy looking  _ other places  _ than to try and read her lips. 

Finally, there was a pause in the music long enough for the DJ to announce that the newly married couple would be cutting the cake - a western tradition that Tohru, while curious, wasn’t willing to stick around for. She made her excuses, mumbling something about going to the ladies room to freshen up, and left the dance floor as quickly as she could. 

Looking around the dimly lit room, Tohru tried to find Kyo or her grandfather - anyone who could save her from another dance. She couldn’t see every table from where she was standing, but as she scanned most of the room she couldn’t find either of them. It was possible that they had gone outside, or that her grandfather had already retired for the evening. Tohru knew that no matter where they were, she couldn’t stay where she was, and so she left the banquet hall and wandered down the hallway in search for a restroom - one of the only places she was sure she would be safe from the attention of the leering groomsman. 

“Hey, gorgeous. Dance floor is back that way.” The voice behind her made Tohru sick to her stomach. It was  _ him _ . “Unless you’re ready to call it a night? We can always make it a  _ private _ party.”

His smirk made her blanch, stomach roiling as the implications of his words set in. For as innocent as Tohru was, there were just some things that you didn’t need to understand to know that the other person didn’t mean well. Looking around the hallway, she tried to find a room, a door to open and then lock behind her, but all she found was a long stretch of wall that was occasionally broken up by a picture frame. 

“I really should be g-going,” she stammered. “My boyfriend will be looking for me.”

The man - whose name she realized she either didn’t know or didn’t remember - grabbed her wrist and pulled her down the hallway toward the elevators. “I don’t think he’ll miss you. For a boyfriend he doesn’t seem all that attached. Maybe he’s off having some fun of his own, if you know what I mean.”

If something less frightening had been happening, Tohru might have had something to say about Kyo and how she knew he wouldn’t do that to her. But she was nearly mute from fear as she tried to resist being dragged down the hallway. She stumbled and nearly fell,losing a shoe as she tripped over the hem of her dress, which elicited a snarl from the man as he tried to pull her upright. 

_ The shoe _ . 

That single thought spurred her onward, and Tohru stumbled again as she reached for it. By now, she was just behind the man, and took the opportunity to grab the shoe and swing it at him as hard as she could. As the toe made contact with the back of his head, he shouted in confusion, releasing her wrist and turning around. 

“You bitch! What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Standing as tall as she could with only one heel on, Tohru stared him down. “I’m not going with you. You are rude and disgusting and do not respect women.” Adrenaline coursed through her as she realized that she had actually said that  _ out loud _ . What was she thinking? She was alone in a hallway! 

He started to come after her, and Tohru turned and ran. She knew she wasn’t the fastest, but she was determined to get away from him. Running turned into hobbling as she struggled with just the one shoe on, and as she gathered her skirts, she rounded a corner and ran headlong into someone as they were leaving the banquet hall. 

“What the hell?” came the disgruntled reply from just above her head. 

It was Kyo. As Tohru realized who she had run into, she let out a whimper and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest. Surprised, Kyo returned the hug. 

“Tohru, what the hell is going on?” he asked. “What are you even doing out here?”

Her first attempt at replying was a rushed jumble of words, and after a few deep breaths, she was finally able to speak clearly. “I couldn’t find you, so I went looking and that… that man from the wedding followed me. He wanted-” she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, not wanting to see the look on Kyo’s face, “He wanted to bring me up to his room. I told him no and I hit him with my shoe, and then I ran.”

Kyo’s arms tightened around her, and she waited for his rebuke. She didn’t blame him - Tohru knew that she must have done something wrong to invite him to talk to her like that, or that she hadn’t told him no clearly enough or soon enough. 

Instead, he gently grabbed her shoulders and held her at arm’s length, looking at her intently. “Do you want to leave? Because we can. We can even call the police if you want to.”

Shocked into silence, Tohru nodded her head. Kyo let go of her arms and started walking down the hallway, and after standing there for a moment, rooted to the ground in shock, Tohru followed him, hobbling along with her one shoe on. They walked down the hallway in silence - Tohru noting that the man was nowhere in sight - and through the lobby to the elevator. Neither of them spoke while they waited for it, or on the ride up to their floor, or as they walked through that hallway to their room. Silently, Kyo pulled the key card out of his wallet, and unlocked the door, holding it open for Tohru before closing and locking it behind him. 

Standing in the entryway to their room, shoe in hand, Tohru wasn’t sure what to do. Her first instinct was to take a shower, to get rid of the feeling of that man’s hands on her, the smell of alcohol from his breath that she couldn’t quite forget. Her other plan was to go straight to sleep and not wake up until it was time to leave the next afternoon. The third plan was to cry. The fourth was to do all three of those things and then maybe eat some chocolate. 

Her course of action was decided for her by Kyo, who walked up to her and handed her the neatly folded pajama shirt and pants that she had worn the night before. 

“Maybe you should, ya know, get changed,” he said quietly. 

Tohru nodded and took the clothes before going into the small bathroom and locking the door behind her. It felt as though she was on autopilot as she changed out of her dress and removed the remaining shoe, quickly showered, and brushed her teeth before putting her pajamas on and going to lay on her side of the bed. 


	12. F Is For Friends (And Also For "Fuck My Life")

As soon as she had vacated the bathroom, Kyo had grabbed his things and locked himself in there, meaning that Tohru was free to watch whatever she wanted on television - a welcome distraction from the awful events of earlier in the evening. Moving toward the center of the bed, she reached for the remote and started clicking through the channels before she settled on an old Mogeta movie and settled into the familiarity of the plot and characters and voices, even if everything else was out of place in her surroundings. The headboard was uncomfortable though, and she grabbed her pillow as well as one of the ones that was usually in the middle of the bed - she wasn’t going to sleep any time soon so why not use the Great Wall of Pillows? - and created a small fluffy nest to settle into, losing herself to the story on the screen. 

The opening and subsequent shutting of a door made Tohru jump, and she looked around wildly before she realized that it was just Kyo, who was in his jeans and t-shirt again, one hand on the door to their room. Looking at him questioningly, she opened her mouth to ask if he was alright, but before he spoke before she could get the words out.

“I’m going to get some ice,” he mumbled, voice trailing behind him as he left. 

Seeing as he didn’t give Tohru any time to answer him, she settled back into the cushions again and waited for her heart rate to go back to normal. She was feeling distinctly more jumpy than usual - not that anyone could blame her after this evening. 

While the story on the television continued, and she began to nod off, Kyo finally returned. Sleepy as she was, she didn’t think to ask him why he wasn’t carrying the ice bucket. Instead, she curled deeper into the blanket and pillow nest that she had created, and turned back to the television and only moved when Kyo was standing between her and her distraction. 

Blinking slowly up at him, Tohru asked, “Do you want to watch Mogeta with me?”

Kyo signed and ran his hand through his hair, pulling at it slightly. “Yeah, sure. Scoot over.”

Tohru tried to scoot over as far as she could, but only made it halfway through before she got tangled in the blankets and fell over with a squeak, her head hanging over the side of the bed. She was only saved from completely losing her battle with gravity by the hand that shot out and grabbed her arm, pulling her back upright. 

“This is exactly why you can’t go anywhere by yourself,” Kyo mumbled, with a laugh in his voice. He pulled her closer toward him to make sure she wasn’t going to fall over again, but it left him in the awkward position of them… almost cuddling.

After an evening of anger, frustration, and unwelcome human contact, Tohru was overwhelmed by the comfort that this brought her, and before he could object, she let her head rest on his arm, her outside arm moving across so that she could wrap her small fingers around his forearm. Kyo stiffened under her touch, apparently not sure what to make of it, but when Tohru didn’t let go and resumed watching Mogeta, he relaxed with a sigh that was somewhere between relief and exasperation. 

\------

For the duration of the movie, Kyo didn’t move despite his arm falling asleep, the fact that he desperately wanted a glass of water, and the fact that Tohru had managed to wrap herself in all of the blankets and his toes were  _ really, really cold _ . Still, every time he looked over at Tohru, there she was with her head on his arm and her hand just above his wrist as she watched television with an intensity that shouldn’t have surprised him. Of course she would want to forget what had happened earlier and leave reality behind for the overblown drama of Mogeta. He didn’t have the heart to make her move when she clearly needed comfort this evening. 

The thought of what transpired earlier this evening made him angry, but also made him feel guilty. Kyo was here to keep Tohru safe, and he hadn’t been there the one time it actually mattered. That was why he had gone out earlier, but he didn’t think it was worth bringing up to her why he had gone out and what had happened. Still, he flexed the fingers on his other hand to try and relieve some of the soreness that had built up since his return. 

The next time he had looked over, Tohru was sound asleep, and the sight of her so calm and comfortable and content (and possibly close to snoring) tugged at his heart. He still didn’t move, but mostly because he didn’t want to disturb whatever little bubble they were in. This was nice, Kyo decided, and was a welcome change from whatever alcohol and pop music fueled party they were  _ supposed  _ to be at. If he had the choice, this was where he would want to be - next to Tohru, making sure that she was happy. That was all that was important. 

Grabbing the remote, he turned the television volume down and closed his eyes, determined to rest them for just a few minutes before he had to disturb the peace. All he needed to do was wait a few minutes, and then he was sure Tohru would let go of his arm. After all, she couldn’t stay like that all night. 

\------

The light that shone through the open curtains made Tohru squint and she wondered idly what time it was. She was sure that Kyo was awake, off on a run somewhere, and she could probably get away with eating breakfast before any of the rest of the wedding party was awake or sober enough to make an appearance - something that she knew she should do but not when she was feeling so  _ warm _ . She hoped she didn’t have a fever. 

Before she could bring herself to get out of bed and take her temperature or do something about it, the source of the warmth  _ moved _ . Shifting against her her, making her arm move, brushing against her nose… Tohru froze. 

_ Oh no, oh no, no no nonononono _ . 

Fully opening her eyes, she realized just why she was so warm - she was curled up next to Kyo. More accurately, she was wrapped around him like a koala bear around a tree branch. After a few moments of reflection, she realized that was probably an exaggeration, but it certainly felt like the truth. Her head was resting on the junction between his shoulder and chest with his arm stretched out beneath her neck while her arm was thrown over his stomach and her leg was hooked over his. 

Tohru leaned up with a gasp, taking in the scene with wide eyes. She remembered falling asleep leaning against his arm last night, but why hadn’t he moved her over or something? She couldn’t think of the possible answers to that. Tohru knew he didn’t like her, not in the same way that she had so recently discovered that she liked him. It had to be pity, that was all. He felt sorry for her after what had happened. As quickly as she could, she gathered her clothes and ran into the bathroom to change clothes and escape their room in search of breakfast. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god i struggled with this chapter so much!! honestly i wrote this about four different times trying to find something that was in character and not as grim as the last chapter, with all the awkwardness that is expected between these two dense-as-rocks-lovebirds.
> 
> feedback/kudos/comments are always appreciated! i'm going to try and get the next chapter out sooner. tohru and kyo are almost back to their regular world - time to see what's going to be resolved.


	13. The Stages of Awkward: Panic, Flight, Avoidance, and Awkward Silences

Tohru didn’t know much about weddings - nothing, actually, other than what romantic movies had shown on television - but she was pretty sure that the party should have ended before breakfast. The movies hadn’t prepared her, though, for the sign of at least a dozen apparently still drunk from the night before party goers downing what looked like bottles of beer (leftover from the party?) and bowls of rice while singing and dancing in their seats in the middle of the room. 

As quickly as she could, she gathered her breakfast plate and found a table in the corner away from the group. They were loud and the sounds were almost abrasive compared to the usual sounds of her morning, or even the dining room just yesterday. It made her long for home, and the train ride home couldn’t come soon enough and she couldn’t wait to get away from these people. Tohru was only here for her cousin, and while she was glad to support her, so many things about this weekend were draining her. The pretense of a false relationship, the emotional strain of a wedding and trying to be supportive in ways that were entirely new to her, the events of yesterday evening and then this morning… It was too much for any one girl to handle. 

Lost in her musings, she didn’t notice Kyo until he was standing next to her with a hand on her shoulder, looking at her with concern. 

Setting down her teacup, she looked up at him and blinked a few times before saying, “Sorry! Good morning, Kyo. You should eat before we have to leave for the train station. Can I get you something? How did you sleep? I’m sorry if I kept you up-”

“Tohru, stop,” he protested. “Just stop for a minute, okay? I woke up and didn’t know where you were…” Kyo hesitated. “I wanted to make sure that you were okay, so I came looking for you, okay? Shigure would kill me if I let you get lost.”

Tohru’s heart sank. Was that all? In a corner of her heart, one that she didn’t want to openly acknowledge, she had hoped that he wanted to talk to her about yesterday, or maybe even last night. But no, of course he only wanted to get her home in one piece. Surely he was tired of having to worry about her all weekend. 

She sank back into her seat while Kyo got his breakfast, and quietly drank her tea. The noise from the wedding breakfast club and Tohru looked away, silently wishing to be anywhere but there, but outwardly observing another part of the room. The energy that it took to keep a contented look on her face was draining, but Tohru knew that it was almost over. Soon she could be home in her own room where she could finally, truly relax, and in her reverie, she tuned out all else, including the glances that Kyo kept shooting her way. 

Before they could escape to pack up and head out, Kaori and her new husband walked in, still dressed for a party. Tohru assumed they had stayed up all night, and while she knew that she should feel happy for her cousin, and be thankful to have one last chance to wish her well in this new part of her life, all Tohru wanted was to go. She shouldn’t have felt like that, which only made her feel more guilty. She plastered the best, brightest smile on her face that she could, and hopped up to greet the happy couple. 

“Kaori!” she squealed. “Did you ever stop partying last night? You look so pretty in your dress!” Tohru wrapped the girl in a hug before holding her at arm’s length to inspect the sparkly white party dress. 

“We just got back,” her cousin answered. “I can’t believe you missed the party last night! The reception was nothing compared to the clubs that we went to. I’m talking private rooms, table service, the whole thing! Seriously, Tohru, you only live once! We would have loved to see you and your hot boy toy out there.” Kaori stopped for a moment and threw a wink and a smirk in Kyo’s direction. “Funny… You guys weren’t the only ones missing though. Andy skipped out on the whole night too. Said he wasn’t feeling so good.”

Was Andy the name of the groomsman? Tohru fought to keep the smile on her face while her heart felt like it dropped through her stomach and toward her feet. 

“I’m so sorry,” Tohru said earnestly, bowing slightly. “It’s just that it was such a long day, and then my shoes were hurting so bad that I could hardly walk. And we leave so soon, but I couldn’t leave without giving you and your husband my best wishes for your future. I’m sure you two will have long and happy lives.”

The rest of their conversation passed by in a haze, and soon enough Kaori was off in search of coffee, leaving Tohru standing in the middle of the breakfast room, at a loss for what to do next. 

That problem, luckily, was solved by Kyo at her side, who placed a gentle hand on her shoulders and said, “We really should get ready to go.”

Nodding, she walked toward the elevator while he trailed behind her, and they made their way up to the room to pack. The actual process of packing didn’t take long - they both had small bags and were light packers - in fact, checking the room to make sure they hadn’t left anything behind might have taken longer than actually gathering their things. During the whole process neither of them spoke, and Tohru avoided looking at the bed with its blankets and sheets mussed and pillows everywhere. Just the thought of how she had woken up this morning was enough to make her blush. 

As soon as they were packed up they left the room and Tohru waited silently in the lobby while Kyo handled things at the front desk. It was an easy job, apparently, because just a few short minutes later they were standing out front waiting for a taxi to take them to the train station to go back home. While they waited, Tohru snuck a glance at Kyo, wondering what was on his mind. As soon as she looked up, she saw he was looking at her, and she looked away in embarrassment. Was he upset about last night? Or that she had left for breakfast without him? Was he regretting being here this weekend? She desperately wanted to ask him, but was afraid of the answers that she might get. 

Their silence - awkward in her mind - continued on through the taxi ride, as well as the wait at the station, and was only broken by Kyo asking if she wanted something to drink before they boarded their train. No sooner had they found seats, they lapsed into silence that was only broken by the occasional cough or sniff, and accompanied by quick glances at each other that were broken as soon as one noticed the other looking. It stayed that way for the entire train ride, the two hours stretching out like taffy until Tohru wasn’t sure that they would ever make it home. 

Soon enough, the train ride was over and the ride from the station in Tokyo to Shigure’s house was over, and the pair were standing at the front door, bags in hand, neither of them reaching for the door. 

“Thank you,” Tohru said quietly, “for coming with me this weekend. I appreciate it very much.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it,” he replied. 

Glancing up, Tohru saw that he was looking at her with a strange look on his face - almost like he wanted to say something, but was deciding against it at the same time and wanted her to be able to read his mind, but was maybe horrified by that thought. It was exactly how Tohru felt in that moment, and while she might admit that she was projecting that, she still wasn’t sure what to make of the moment. But, before she could figure it out, Kyo slid open the door and walked inside to disappear up the stairs, leaving her to say hello to the rest of the household. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wonder who else might be at the house now that everyone is back in Tokyo... 
> 
> kudos/comments/love/shares are always appreciated!


	14. If Misery Loves Company, Then This Must Be the Popular Table

An explosion of voices greeted Tohru - far more than she was expecting. Toeing off her shoes in the entryway, she followed the noise to see that Yuki wasn’t alone at the table. Machi, Kakeru, Kimi, and several other students joined him. Looking around quickly, Shigure was nowhere visible which meant that he had locked himself in to write, he was avoiding his editor again, or he was off at the main estate. 

She had walked into what appeared to be a meeting that had gotten off track. Machi was sitting quietly watching everyone, Kakeru was being exuberant and expressive (his usual, she had decided), Kimi was talking with several other students, and Yuki was sitting there with a pained expression on his face that she usually saw when he was trying not to hit Kyo, lips pulled into a grimace and fingers pinching the bridge of his nose.  _ It was good to be home.  _

“Hello everyone!” she said brightly before bowing slightly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know there would be company. Can I make anyone some tea?”

Kakeru stood up and pretended to bounce… something? Maybe nothing? It wasn’t clear, but then he bowed at Tohru with a flourish. “Hey my name is Trey, I have a basketball game tomorrow.”

“Ignore him,” Machi interjected, eyes focused on her notes while she kicked at her half-brother’s ankle, causing him to collapse. “He’s on a Vine kick.”

Looking up, Yuki took advantage of the silence to add, “Tea would be wonderful, Miss Honda. Would you like to join us?”

“Oh no, I really shouldn’t. You all look like you have business to take care of, and besides I have to unpack and then start on dinner soon… Will you all be joining us?” Tohru looked around the table, trying to take a headcount for the tea while also calculating what on earth she was going to make for dinner. “Is Shigure here?”

“I think we’ll be done here soon, so please don’t worry about the company for dinner.” At that, Yuki shot a pointed glance at Kakeru, and Tohru thought it said something like _At least then I can get some peace and quiet_ before continuing to say, “No, he’s visiting with Hatori and Ayame. No doubt we won’t see him until tomorrow.” 

“Alright, well let me just get some tea started, and then we can go from there. One step at a time right?”

Tohru was thankful to have something to keep her busy, and quickly set up a tray of teacups while the water boiled. She could see that Shigure and Yuki hadn’t done any shopping while they were gone and there was little in the way of snacks… She would need to go to the store soon. Puttering around in the kitchen, she straightened things up and put things away, killing time until the tea was ready - something that took longer than she would have liked. 

With the tea done, she brought in the tray of cups and then the kettle and a spare dish cloth for it to rest on to the table. The group was back to discussing class and school activities before the school closed down for summer break, as well as going through applications for Yuki’s replacement (something that brought Kakeru to dramatic tears, causing Tohru to giggle as she left the room). 

Grabbing her bag from where she had dropped it by the entryway, Tohru took it upstairs so that she could at least get a start on unpacking. Once she was at the top of the stairs she stood on the landing facing Kyo’s door, uncertainty churning in her stomach as she wondered if she should knock. What would she even say? She felt like she needed to apologize, but Tohru wasn’t sure what for. She hadn’t done anything wrong -  _ they  _ hadn’t done anything wrong. Or anything at all, actually. 

\------

As Tohru walked up the stairs, Yuki watched her, following her movements thoughtfully. She had been polite and considerate as she always was, but something had seemed wrong. Her smile hadn’t quite reached her eyes. Her offer to join their group was odd too - normally she didn’t push into the student council group and what they were doing. She was always happy to help if asked, but she never offered. 

Between that and the fact that Kyo had stormed up the stairs (not something unusual in and of itself, but combined with her behaviors, odd) he was sure that something had happened. It was probably just that Kyo was his usual gruff self, and had said or done something that had ruffled feathers or upset her. He would be made to pay for it later, but it could wait. 

“Where were we?” he asked distractedly, flipping through the stack of papers in front of him. “

"Two bros, chilling in a hot tub, 5 feet apart cause they're not gay."

“ _ Kakeru _ ,” Yuki groaned. “I may actually murder you before graduation.”

With a clearly overexaggerated look of hurt on his face, Kakeru replied with "Mother trucker dude, that hurt like a butt cheek on a stick."

And without missing a beat, Kimi and Machi said at the same time, “What the fuck, Richard.”

Yes, he was definitely going to murder Kakeru before graduation, Yuki decided. Besides, if he didn’t do it, the next president might. But, first thing first, they needed to find that new president. And then Yuki needed to figure out what had happened that had Tohru so off balance. And then, if he felt like it, he might kick Kyo into the next millennium. Priorities, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short little transitional chapter here before things start getting juicy! And by juicy I mean very awkward. And of course, as a transition chapter, I needed to include Kakeru and his Vine-y ways... Only now he has the rest of the Student Council in on it. Yuki doesn't stand a chance.
> 
> comments/kudos/feedback are always loved and appreciated!


	15. Cupid Sucks: Tohru’s Week from Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is best enjoyed with headphones at the ready, or being in a place where you can listen to music.  
> Special thanks to floraltohru and a-bigail! Annabelle listens to me ramble about this far too much, and the whole pining-Tohru-with-THAT-song was Abby's idea!

Monday 

The week dawned bright and sunny and full of all the promise that every Monday had. Tohru woke up with sunlight beaming through the windows, and she was reminded of another recent morning where that had happened. Pushing past the longing and humiliation, she got up and dressed quickly in her uniform before preparing breakfast as usual. 

What was unusual, though, was the time. Always an early riser, she was even earlier than usual today, rushing to make breakfast that could be kept cold for when the others were awake. The kettle was full of water and ready to be boiled, cups and tea set out, bowls and utensils at the ready. Everything was done. 

Tohru was scribbling a note on the back of a garbage notice when Yuki walked in, startling her and causing her pencil to skid across the page erratically. 

“Oh, Yuki,” she said breathlessly. “You’re up early. Is everything alright? Can I get you some breakfast?” Tohru started fiddling around with the kettle and gathering utensils. 

He held out a hand to stop her and smiled gently. “No, thank you Miss Honda. I’m afraid I have an early morning with the Student Council, so I have to leave in just a moment.”

Her brain began churning out thoughts almost faster than she could keep up, but the opportunity was clear. It didn’t take a genius to realize that the situation she found herself in with Kyo was untenable. Things had happened that neither of them wanted to talk about, and judging by how Kyo had acted yesterday he didn’t want to spend any more time around her that necessary. It was a painful truth - it made her heart hurt and sink in ways that were deeper and unfamiliar but upsetting nonetheless. The best course of action was the avoid anything - or anyone - that brought up that feeling. 

“If you’ll wait just a moment, I can pack up some rice balls for us to take and we can walk together,” she said brightly. 

Luckily, Yuki didn’t question her or tell her that he was alright and that she should wait for Kyo while she frantically grabbed her things and headed toward the door - some rivalries and animosity ran too deep and clouded the mind too much, and this was one of those times. 

Their walk was mostly silent as they headed away from the Sohma property, down the stairs, through the woods and across the bridge. Tohru kept her eyes on the ground, welcoming the silence and not trying to fill it. 

The same couldn’t be said for Yuki.

As they walked, he watched her pensively, wondering what had caused this change. 

His question broke through the silence, shattering the fragile peace of their morning. “Did Kyo do something to upset you? If so, he should apologize.”

Tohru’s response was another marker of whatever had affected her so deeply. Normally, she would have flailed about and frantically tried to reassure him that everything was fine, but now she took the time to think and weigh her words before answering. 

“Nothing wrong or inappropriate happened,” she answered quietly. “I just thought that maybe going to school early would give me a chance to catch up on what I missed on Friday. With graduation so close, I don’t want to risk messing that up to-

Messing that up, I mean.”

To his credit, Yuki took her question at face value, and they continued their walk in silence. Tightening his grip on the straps of his backpack, he looked at Tohru carefully as she kept her eyes on the ground and holding her back in front of her with both hands. 

That was one awkward situation avoided - how many more would she face until things blew over or got better? There was no telling.

\------

Tuesday

After the slump that was Monday - spent with Hana and Uo avoiding all Sohmas and working an extra, unintended shift at work - Tuesday was primed to be much better. After the initial sting of avoiding everyone but her oldest friends at lunch, the loneliness was easier to bear. The walk to school early and alone felt too long without conversation to distract her, but gave her time to think. She was more focused in classes (even though this was the one week that she should reasonably be able to relax) and spent her lunch working with teachers to make up what she missed. All she had to do was keep this up for the week. She could figure out what to do after graduation once she got to that point.

But when she got home, Tohru already felt her determination flagging and her outlook dimming. Toeing off her shoes in the doorway, she called out to ask if anyone was home. Shigure didn’t answer, so she could assume he was away, Kyo was at the dojo, and Yuki had said that he needed to stay late today to prepare things for graduation. She had the entire house to herself - a rare occurrence that she wanted to take advantage of. 

And by take advantage of, she meant listening to her music as loud as she wanted, laying on the floor of her bedroom while staring at the ceiling. 

Half an hour later, that was exactly where she found herself, a glass of water and a plate of leftovers on her table beside her. There seemed to be no end to the misery in her own heart, and a quick internet search showed her the best songs to listen to to soothe - or maybe tear the band aid off of - her heart.

The opening strains of [ “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None The Richer ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTLnlkrCK8c) sounded from her phone’s speakers. Laying on the floor nearly spread eagle, eyes closed and phone resting on her stomach, Tohru let herself drown in the music and the words. Some twisted masochistic need had her playing the song on repeat at full volume, eyes closed as she let herself imagine a world where Kyo wasn’t defensive and stiff as a board around her, and one where maybe they did get to dance at the wedding and kiss under the moonlight, where they didn’t have to pretend that they were dating because they actually were. As awkward as those two days had been, it had given her a glimpse of what things could be like. After such a long time of being alone (no matter how many friends she had) the thought of having someone to trust and love, who would comfort her and laugh with her, stand by her and protect her… It was almost too much for her to think of. 

[ Song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iF_qU5JoIE8) after [ song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssdgFoHLwnk) after [ song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv_FM0OlXtc) after [ song ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3VjaCy5gck), the words spoke to the feelings that she wouldn’t let out when anyone else was around. How had she become so miserable in only two days? If she was being honest with herself, this had probably started a long time ago, but she hadn’t been able to acknowledge it. All it had taken was one weekend to show her what she knew - she was definitely in like (maybe love) with Kyo. 

And he didn’t feel the same way. 

As her makeshift playlist came back to the first song, she hit the button to make it play on repeat, tears sliding down the sides of her face as they were squeezed out of the corners of shut eyes. Lost in the music, she didn’t hear the front door open, or the soft sound of footsteps on the stairs. 

When Haru walked past her bedroom to get to Yuki’s, he didn’t say a word, but his lips were pulled down in a knowing grimace. He had only come here to grab some books of Yuki’s that he needed for school, not eavesdrop on what was clearly a sad evening for Tohru. Of course, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t try and do something about it. 

\------

Wednesday

It was nearly exactly halfway through the week. Tohru was walking down the hallway toward her math teacher’s room where she planned on spending lunch, when Hana and Uo took her by the arms, elbows nearly sticking into their sides, and hauled her the other direction. Her protests were drowned in the noise of students rushing off to enjoy their freedom before having to return to classes for the afternoon, and even if her friends had heard her it wouldn’t have mattered - they were clearly on a mission, and she was helpless to stop them.

They only stopped when they found an empty classroom and dropped Tohru into a desk chair, pulling up chairs on either side of her, looking for all the world like stern and concerned parents. 

“You guys,” she squeaked, “What’s going on?”

Arisa’s answer was swift and uncompromising. “It’s an intervention Tohru. This is the quietest and saddest we’ve seen you since Kyoko died. Did your aunt say something to you while you were at the wedding? ‘Cause I swear I’ll kick her ass.”

Opposite her, Saki was the more peaceful of the two, looking at Tohru with a quiet focus, waiting for the other girl to answer before she spoke out. 

Looking between her friends, Tohru thought she might cry from the overwhelming feeling of love and care. How could she have thought she was alone? These girls were her family, and no amount of pain or self-inflicted misery would change that. She had been selfish to think otherwise, and wanted to apologize for her feelings. But to do that, she had to explain them first. 

“It wasn’t my aunt,” Tohru answered, shaking her head. “She said some terrible things about Mom, but I did my best to stand up to her! And it felt good! The problem was… Kyo.”

The shocked looks on her friends faces gave her enough time to start her story without interruption, the words spilling out of her as she explained everything about the weekend from her cousin’s assumptions, to the shared hotel room, the groomsman who had said such awful things and her defense of herself, falling asleep with Kyo - which she described as quickly as she could while being cherry red in the face - and everything that happened on their trip home. It was a relief to confide in her friends how sad and miserable she was, how she had realized that a relationship with Kyo, even a fake one, seemed like such a wonderful extension of their friendship that she wanted the real thing very badly, but it could never happen because he obviously didn’t like her. 

By the time her story was done, her chest was heaving with emotions and her need to take several deep, calming breaths. Neither of her friends spoke for several minutes as they sat there holding her hands.

As was her habit, Arisa spoke up first. 

“That’s… goddamn, Tohru, that’s a _lot_ to be dealing with,” she said quietly. “I- We always figured that you and Carrots were close, but it shouldn’t hurt. You deserve better than that. Better than him.”

Tears filled Tohru’s eyes as she replied, “But that’s the problem. I only want him.”

Saki reached forward to brush away Tohru’s tears before wrapping her in a hug and stroking her hair. The turmoil in Tohru’s waves made her whole world feel off-kilter and shaken up, and it was only made worse by the knowledge that neither girl could do anything to help their friend. They could threaten with fists or evil waves and fight off so many people who might wish Tohru ill, but this was a battle that she had to fight for herself. All they could do was comfort her, and Saki silently swore to do better at it. 

\------

Thursday

This was it, the day before her high school graduation. It had been a horribly long week, and Tohru was glad to see the end of it, even if her future was hanging in the balance as of tomorrow. With no work plans other than continuing to work at the office, and no idea where she would live after graduation, she was determined to make the best of what she could in her life, and that meant asking Shigure - however last minute - if it would be alright to throw a graduation party tomorrow. He agreed almost immediately, followed quickly by his insistence that she invite all of her “lovely, delightful girl-friends” to the party as well. Although she may have blushed and stuttered, she did say that several of Yuki’s Student Council members were girls and they would probably be there, as well as Hana and Uo, which was enough to satisfy him for now. 

The rest of the evening was spent cooking and cleaning - not that there was much to do outside of the kitchen, considering how neatly she liked to keep things. If she really wanted to, Tohru knew she could call Kagura and ask for her help, since the girl was an excellent chef, but she was fairly certain that she would be at the dojo tonight, and she couldn’t dare interrupt her training. 

So, Tohru spent her evening preparing snacks and other goodies and cleaning up the kitchen and the bathrooms, as those would be the most visited rooms inside the house. She planned on the usual Sohma group - Haru, Momiji, Kagura, Kisa, Hiro, Ritsu, Rin possibly, Hatori, Ayame (Yuki would hate that, she knew), Saki, Arisa, the Student Council, Yuki, and of course… Kyo. But with that many people, she reasoned, it would be easy enough to play hostess to celebrate the graduates and avoid any awkward confrontations. 

By the time Yuki made it home, Tohru was up in her room preparing a playlist for the party and texting out invitations. The fridge was stocked with goodies (with a note on the door telling the boys to _stay away or else,_ the threat lessened by the smiley face at the end) and the house was clean. Everything that she could do had been done, everything she could prepare had been prepared. Absolutely every single thing within Tohru’s control at the moment was being taken care of. 

She would worry about the rest afterward.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, Kyo's very-bad-miserable-horrible week. I think we can all guess why our boy is grumpy. 
> 
> comments/kudos/feedback/shares are appreciated! we're nearing the end folks!


	16. I Am Running on Misplaced Aggression and Too Much Tea: Kyo’s Week of Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A hundred, thousand, million thanks for FloralTohru, who listens to me ramble about this and always listens to me about Kyoru.

Monday

_ Idiot. Absolute and complete, record breaking idiot.  _ Kyo had fallen asleep with that thought on Sunday night and woke up with it on Monday morning. When he and Tohru had stood in front of the house, he wasn’t sure what to say to her or if he even  _ should  _ say something, and so he reverted to how he had been years ago - mostly silent, brusque when he actually spoke, and unwilling to engage with pretty much anything or anyone. 

There were any number of things that he could have said yesterday evening, but somehow all he could do was say something stupid that sounded like he was angry and disappear up to his room. 

Feelings, he decided, could kiss his ass. Throwing on his school uniform, he took his aggression out on the layers of fabric and then on the books and papers that he stuffed into his bag.

Because that’s what was going on, wasn’t it? From the moment Tohru had showed up at the house, things had been different for the whole Sohma family. They had turned from a bunch of emotionally-stunted, psychologically tortured misfits into actual human beings, himself included. And when he saw that she needed something, if he was able to take care of it he did. That had been his reasoning for going to this wedding in the first place - she needed someone to take care of her, Yuki was an asthmatic idiot who couldn’t, and he wouldn’t let Shigure within three feet of her if he could help it. Obviously, he was the only choice. 

He had started out like that, but somewhere between shrine tours and rehearsal dinners and watching her take part in something as serious and life-altering as a wedding… something had changed. The catalyst, he thought, could have been that last night. He had failed to protect her when she actually needed him, and his hand tightened on his toothbrush as he thought about it. At least she had defended herself. That didn’t stop him from going back for the guy though, after she had been asleep. He had managed to find the asshole and pull him into the parking lot, away from the lights of the hotel, and knocked some sense into him. By the time he was done, the other man was in a heap on the ground and Kyo’s knuckles ached while his lungs burned with the night air and his fury. 

Taking the stairs two at a time, he knew that he needed to talk to Tohru at some point. He needed to apologize, at the very least. In his mind, Kyo pictured finding Tohru in the kitchen making breakfast, where he could take her hands in his and say  _ I was a huge asshole and I’m really sorry. I’m sorry I was angry. I’m sorry things were weird. I’m sorry we didn’t get to dance. I’d really like- _

But his chance to apologize would never come. Instead of finding a kitchen full of morning light and Tohru’s humming, he found a cold, dark room with a note on the table. Even though it wasn’t finished, it said something about needed to be at school early to catch up on her work. 

Well, shit. 

\------

Tuesday

The only good thing about Mondays were that it got him one day closer to Tuesdays when he could spend his time after school at the dojo. 

Sometimes he would sit with Master and they would just talk, discussing everything and nothing while they cleaned the dojo or while Kyo cooked dinner. Other times, Kyo might be in charge of a class for the younger children, or he spent his afternoon sparring. There was no shortage of partners - most days, Haru, Kagura, and a few others that he knew came by for the practice. He would always end those sessions dripping sweat and breathing heavily while he lay on the ground or leaned up against a wall, and spend the next few days nursing bruises and sore spots (especially if he was up against Kagura). 

Tonight, though, his heart just wasn’t in it. Kyo led the beginner class with as much skill and precision as he had been taught, but whenever a student said or did something funny his smile didn’t reach his eyes and his laugh sounded hollow. And while he could have taken the rest of the evening off, he opted to mop the floors and clean up around the place. Sitting still wasn’t an option tonight, not with his thoughts running the way they were. What was Tohru doing tonight? Had she remembered that he wouldn’t be home tonight? What had she made for dinner? He hoped that Yuki and Shigure were behaving themselves, he thought darkly. As much as Tohru hated it when they fought, he would have no trouble putting one of them through a wall if they said or did anything to upset her. 

By that logic, he should have put himself through a wall a hundred times over. Kyo knew he would deserve each and every time, if it ever happened. 

\------

Wednesday

Two and a half days and not a single sign of Tohru. Was she avoiding him? The thought pained Kyo more than he expected, and made him feel like he should apologize for anything and everything he had ever said and done - which, to be fair, he probably should do anyway, but he never seemed to care unless it concerned her. 

When she had been absent from lunch on Monday, Kyo assumed that she had been catching up on work from when she was gone. He needed to do the same, but was determined to do it on his own. When she didn’t appear on Tuesday either, he was sure that she was avoiding him. She never missed lunch, especially when it meant spending time with Momiji. He would have listed Hana and Uo in that as well, but the pair were also conspicuously missing. 

By Wednesday, he was itching for a fight. How had any of them survived before Tohru? This was the most time he had spent away from her at all since she had moved in, and he could feel himself getting more irritable by the hour. It was that irritation that made him nearly deck Haru when he sat down next to him on the rooftop, Momiji trailing behind. 

“What’d you do?” Haru asked, voice flat and face blank. 

Kyo bristled. Who the hell died and made this Haru’s business? Turning back to his lunch, he took a vicious bite out of a rice ball. He didn’t answer Haru, hoping that if he kept silent long enough the other boy would give up and leave. 

When Haru sat down next to him and pulled out his own lunch, Kyo knew that he was really in for it. Momiji sat down on the other side of Haru and watched the pair with wide eyes. 

“I went by the house last night to grab some books from Yuki’s room,” the other boy continued. “Figured since he was busy I would just go get them myself. Whatever happened had Tohru hiding in her room blasting sad sappy songs. It’s like I walked into one of those J-dramas that Kisa’s been watching lately. So… what’d you do?”

It didn’t look like he was getting out of this one, so Kyo swallowed his lunch - and his pride - and answered. “Nothin’. Took her to her cousin’s wedding, cousin assumed we were dating. We played along, it was fine.”

Up until this point, Momiji had been silent, but he was extremely protective of Tohru and always had been. It wasn’t a surprise when he burst out, “Well clearly you did something! You should know better than to upset Tohru!”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Kyo shouted. His voice echoed in the empty space. “Look, I don’t know what happened.”  _ Liar.  _ “Everything was fine. She got dressed up, she had a good time, it was great.”  _ Still lying…  _ “Just leave it alone.”

Haru sat there watching him silently. His stare was unnerving, and Kyo was itching to hit the guy, but he didn’t feel like getting in trouble two days before graduation. Momiji, on the other hand, was glaring at Kyo with every ounce of his being. Everyone knew the kid had a soft spot for Tohru, so it made sense. That didn’t mean Kyo had to put up with it. 

“Whatever, I’m leavin’,” he snorted. 

“If you don’t fix things with Tohru, you will regret it!” Momiji shouted. “I know that she means more to you than you want to say, so get your head out of your ass!”

Kyo turned on his heel, eyes wide with shock, and even Haru looked like he had (for once) been surprised. 

“Where’d you learn to talk like that, kid?” Haru asked. 

“I’ve spent the last two years hanging out with you and Kyo almost every day,” he shrugged. “What did you expect?”

\------

Thursday

By the end of the week, Kyo’s nerves were pitched to such an extreme that when his phone rang, he actually threw it across his room at the dojo. Even the sound of a ringtone was enough to put him on edge, and it was just another irritating reminder of what had (or hadn’t) been going on in his life. 

Crouching down to pick up the phone, he saw the unknown number and almost didn’t answer it. It was probably a scammer, or some automated phone call. Staring at it, it rang three more times before he decided to answer. 

“Hello,” he said flatly.

_ Is that any way to greet your father? _

Kyo froze. “My father is down the hall teaching a class to a bunch of 7 year olds. This is how I greet the man who happened to give my mom some genetic material.”

_ Well then how about the man who still has control of what your mother left you until you become an adult? _

Goddamnit, the bastard had him there. Kyo sighed. “Fine… Good afternoon, sir. Why are you calling me?”

_ I’m calling to make you an offer. You graduate tomorrow. I understand that Kazuma wants you to take over the dojo. But there’s no money in that, and I understand that you don’t get along well with most of the family. Move to Osaka. Work under me. Not only will I give you control of what your mother left you, you will gain a share of my company.  _

“What’s the catch?”

_ There’s no catch… son.  _

So that was it. Kyo knew that his biological father didn’t have any other children. And at his age, he was probably looking to make some moves with the company, and choosing him - as much as they disagreed - would be better than causing enmity in the company. 

“No. You’re not my father anymore. I’m not going to show up and act like your son after everything you did.”

_ You’ll get nothing if you don’t. I’ll keep everything and you’ll never see a dime. Would you prefer to live on the charity of the Sohmas?  _

“I’ll make my own way, you fucker. Never call me again.”

If he could have slammed the phone, he would have. Instead, he settled for pressing the “End Call” button as aggressively as he could before slamming it on his desk. 

Even as tempting as it was to walk away and never see Yuki’s smug face or never hear Shigure’s disgusting comments about high school girls again, how much he wanted to leave his mother’s family behind and never face them or their resentment again, he couldn’t exchange that for his biological father. 

Pacing his room, Kyo wanted to talk to… someone. Anyone. He knew he could talk to Kazuma about it, but he didn’t want to talk about that man to him, not after everything Kazuma had done to help him, take him away from that house. That left him with one option, who wasn’t even really an option. Tohru was the only person who he was ever able to openly talk to about his father. And he knew that she would understand. She would encourage him to make the best choice for himself, no matter what anyone else wanted. And she would do it without pity or judgement. His chest ached at the thought of how much he wanted to talk to her about this, but knew that he couldn’t just go home and drop this on her. Not after everything that had happened. 

His stomach said and an icy feeling filled his lungs as he realized - this could be the biggest casualty of his own stubborn blindness. Even if he could never be what he wanted to for Tohru, he could have stayed her friend. He needed her in his life. What if he had messed that up forever? What if he had already lost her?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you think our poor kiddos have suffered enough yet? We're almost at the end, so hopefully they get it together soon!
> 
> comments/kudos/feedback are love!


	17. Vitamin C (You Later, High School!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, graduation is boring as hell and no one remembers at least half of it, but it's important! I had to acknowledge our kiddos graduating!  
> Also, if you aren't familiar with the Vitamin C song that is frequently played at graduations, I envy you.
> 
> Literally no spoilers, just self-indulgent feels. And Megumi glaring at people.

Graduation was, frankly, completely forgettable. There was a speaker who droned on for so long that students started to get antsy in their seats. The valedictorian gave a speech. Yuki gave a speech (Tohru cheered, Kyo rolled his eyes). These weren’t the important parts of graduation, not really, not unless you were a teacher or you sat on the school board or did something equally adult and unimportant to the students who were about to gain their freedom from academic (for some, at least). 

And then finally, one by one, students were called up to get their diplomas. 

Saki was called up first, as they went alphabetically by last name. Tohru and Arisa cheered the loudest of all the graduates, only matched by the Hanajima family in the crowd. Megumi was surprisingly loud, and managed to clap and cheer for her while glaring daggers at the Yuki Fan Club who cowered, even from that distance. The sight made Tohru giggle.

Before she knew it, Tohru was being called up to the stage. All around her, cheers sounded - more than she would have anticipated. She could hear Arisa, Saki, could pick out Momiji and Kisa and Kagura in the crowd without looking. Her heart swelled as she walked to the stage, and took a moment to look out at the crowd when she reached the top of the stairs. Her friends were standing, cheering for her as hard as she could. Arisa, Saki, Yuki and even Kyo were there, standing and smiling at her. She smiled and waved, looking at each one. And there, in the stands, there was a whole knot of Sohmas - all of them that she had met over the years, standing there, cheering her on. Her heart swelled with love so much she started to cry, and then her tears turned into real, earnest tears of sadness. No matter how many people were here for her, her mother wasn’t. Her parents were missing, and even though she could feel the love her friends had for her, it wasn’t the same. But as she reached the end of the stage, she took one last look at her classmates, at all the people who had been part of her life for three years. It was surprisingly heartbreaking to realize that she wouldn’t see some of them again. But all she had to do was look at Arisa and Saki, and Yuki and Kyo, to realize that the important people would always be there. She would always have them, even if it wasn’t the way she wanted or as often as she wanted as they all grew up and moved on. 

There was quite a stretch of names that Tohru didn’t really remember, or people whose faces had been a blur in the hallway, but before she knew it, it was their turn. The boys. Her boys, in so many ways. And no matter what, she would always love them as her family. 

Kyo was first. When his name was called, it was silent for just a moment - he looked so handsome that she was sure it was just a collective stunned silence from all in attendance, and at least some annoyed silence from some of the Sohmas, particularly Yuki. But then the room erupted into cheers and shouts and whistles, and none louder than Tohru, Saki, Arisa, and the other Sohmas. Haru shouted and whistled and Momiji shouted something that sounded positive in German, while Kagura screamed and stomped, and the rest of them cheered and shouted congratulations. There was a stunned look on his face as he approached the stairs and made his way up to the stage, almost as if he couldn’t believe that he was graduating. Or maybe that he couldn’t believe all of the cheers that all of the cheers were for him. Several of the girls (and a boy or two) in the crowd shouted “We love you Kyo!” and for a moment Tohru was so jealous that she couldn’t breathe. But it was harmless, and she could never begrudge him the support of his classmates. Finally, he finished crossing the stage and went back to his seat, sharing high fives with several boys in the class before he was done. 

Of course the girls screamed louder than anyone else when Yuki’s name was called. The shrieks of her classmates were almost deafening and for a moment Tohru had to stop clapping to cover her ears and recover from the noise while she looked around. It wasn’t just his fan club that was cheering though, it was everyone. Since joining the Student Council Yuki had come out of his shell a bit more, socializing with more people both for the council and on his own. Clearly he had charmed everyone he met, for there wasn’t a single graduate who looked upset or unhappy to see him cross the stage. Of course, the Sohmas in the stands cheered loudly too - Tohru expected nothing less. Even Hiro was clapping for him! 

Finally, it was Arisa’s turn. Tohru knew that if her mother were still alive, she would be clapping and cheering and shouting for Arisa as she would have for Tohru. The girl had looked up to her mother so much, but Tohru knew how much Kyoko had loved the blonde as well. She had always treated her as another daughter, and loved her just as fiercely. In her mother’s place, Tohru cheered as loud as she could, praying that her friend could hear her over the noise. The cheers weren’t as loud as they had been for the Sohmas, but they were still there - something that she was sure Arisa would joke was more out of fear than love or appreciation (or that maybe they were cheering that the terrifying blonde would no longer be stalking the halls of the school, glaring at anyone who dared look at her friends the wrong way). Between herself and Saki, Saki’s family, and the Sohmas that Arisa had come to know though, she figured that they made up for lack of a large family or an adoring crowd. All Tohru wanted was to let Arisa know that she was loved, and she always would be. 

And like that, it was over. They were no longer high school students, free to live their lives, to work or go to college (or both), and were released onto the world. At the given signal, they shifted the tassels on their graduation caps and cheered before throwing them in the air.

Finally, they were free. 


	18. This Time, There’s Background Music

There were cold drinks, plenty of snacks, chips and dip and vegetables and fruit from the market in party trays, music playing, and maybe there weren’t corny graduation decorations, but otherwise the party was perfect. 

Shigure had been roped in to taking the boys to the main estate on a false errand of seeing Akito or maybe Hatori while Tohru set up the house, changed into a party dress (the one that she should have worn after the wedding - it was a shame not to use it, right?) and welcomed guests to the party. Of course, Arisa and Saki kept telling her to relax and remember that she had graduated too, but Tohru enjoyed playing hostess, and so she spent her time checking on friends to make sure they were enjoying themselves. She welcomed Kazuma, Kagura, and Ritsu before disappearing inside to get more bags of chips, snacked on fruit while discussing summer plans with the girls, and had finally started to relax when she heard her name from across the front yard. 

With her heart in her throat, she saw Shigure walking back with the boys, accompanied by Haru and Momiji. For a moment she had hoped that it was Kyo who called to her, but the voice was all wrong. She hesitated for just a few seconds before she realized that it was Momiji who had called her name and was waving, and she happily waved back, practically skipping across the yard to meet them. 

Momiji ran ahead of the others and scooped Tohru up in a hug, picking her up and spinning her around while she squealed in delight. When he finally set her down and she pushed her hair out of her face, she could see that Haru and Yuki were looking on with smiles and Shigure was… well, he was probably saying something inappropriate but she tuned it out. Kyo, though, looked grim. She wasn’t sure why, and told herself that it was no concern of hers if he wouldn’t talk to her, and she was determined to make this a wonderful graduation party. 

Hours went by without her worrying about Kyo again, spending her time checking on party guests, graciously accepting small graduation gifts from her friends, and chatting with Kagura, Kisa, and Momiji. She laughed, and cried just a little, and tried desperately not to think about what was going to happen once tomorrow came. 

Not far off, Yuki was standing with the members of the student council, smiling wryly at something that Kimi had said. They all seemed to be enjoying themselves - especially Kakeru, who appeared to appreciate having an expanded audience for his Vine-related humor. As Tohru looked on, however, it seemed that Yuki was tired of it. Turning toward the other boy, Yuki said something that Tohru didn’t hear, and when that didn’t shut Kakeru up, Yuki dropped his drink, took Kakeru’s face in both hands, and kissed him. Apparently, the tactic worked, because Kakeru stood there gaping like a fish afterwards, but was blessedly silent. 

Kyo, meanwhile, was standing with Haru and Kazuma, mostly silently but occasionally engaging in the conversation. Any time Tohru was within his field of vision, his eyes tracked her almost against his will. He couldn’t help watching her, something that didn’t go unnoticed by his adoptive father. 

“Go talk to her,” Kazuma urged him quietly. 

Shaking his head he said, “I can’t, Master. We haven’t spoken all week. I think it’s been too long.”

Turning to face his charge, Kazuma placed his hands on Kyo’s shoulder. Once, he would have had to lean down to do that, but now they were almost eye-to-eye. “Son, if she is important to you, then you need to speak to her. You are so afraid of being hurt that you won’t let anyone in. Not everyone is your father. I think she cares for you very much, if you would let her.”

Mutely, Kyo nodded. He knew that Master was right, but it was still something that terrified him. He shoved his hands in his pockets before crossing the yard to where Tohru was arranging cups on the table and sweeping trash into a bag. 

“I can take that. If you want,” he said suddenly, causing her to jump. 

Wide-eyed, Tohru nodded and gave him the bag, which freed her arms to gather up plastic trays that were now empty, and cups that were already used. She started toward the house and Kyo followed, unsure if it was the right thing to do but determined to do it anyway. 

Once in the kitchen, she dropped the mess into the trash can and leaned against the counter, watching as Kyo tied off the bag and set it down. 

“I’m sorry I-”

“I wanted to apologize-”

They smiled sheepishly at each other before lapsing into silence. Tohru dug her fingertips into the edge of her dress, twisting the fabric between her fingers. 

“You go first,” she said quietly. 

Kyo took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair, his hand settling at the back of his neck. “I’m sorry that we didn’t get to dance at the wedding,” he said suddenly. “And that I was grumpy all the time. And that I didn’t help you with that guy.”

“I’m used to you being grumpy, though,” she protested. “You’re almost always like that. And… I would have liked to dance with you.” Tohru couldn’t talk about the night of the wedding; it hurt too much just to think about it. 

“And I’m sorry that I-”

“Tohru, you have nothing to apologize for!” Kyo interrupted. “You didn’t do anything wrong, you know. You don’t have to apologize every time something goes wrong, especially when you didn’t cause it.”

At that, she started to tear up in earnest, tears gathering in her eyes and leaving wet tracks down her cheeks. “I did though,” she sniffled. “I agreed to pretend to be your girlfriend, and I didn’t ask to change hotel rooms, and I  _ fell asleep on you! _ I ruined it.”

Crossing the empty space, Kyo reached out for her, but thought better of it and settled for resting his hands on her shoulders. “Ruined what?” he asked gently. 

“Us! You’ve always been such a good friend to me, and since then you’ve been so cold and distant! I thought you didn’t want to be friends anymore, which made me sad because I-”

By now, Tohru was truly crying, and hiccuping every few words. This was supposed to be a celebration, but here she was, standing in the kitchen, crying all over the one person who deserved a day to celebrate his accomplishments more than anyone else she knew. 

“Because?” he prompted her.

“Because-”  _ hic  _ “You’ve always been so-”  _ hic  _ “Special to me! And when I was pre-”  _ hic  _ “Pretending to be your girlfriend, I realized I-”  _ hic  _ “I really-”  _ hic  _ “I really want to be-”  _ hic  _ “To be your girlfriend!”

Eyes open wide in horror, Tohru slowly realized what she had just said. How could she have been so stupid? Clearly, Kyo didn’t want to be around her anymore, and here she was confessing that she wanted the weekend that had upset him so much to be real! She couldn’t believe he was still standing in front of her, even looking at her, after what she had said. 

“You actually want to be my girlfriend?” he asked slowly. 

Tohru nodded, eyes still wide in fear. 

That’s when he started laughing. At first it was a smile that didn’t seem to stop, and it was as if happiness were bubbling up so much that it started as quiet, almost choked giggles that turned into full-blown laughter. 

“Oh thank God,” Kyo said breathlessly. “Tohru, I spent this entire week convinced that you were avoiding me because you hated me! And the thought of that drove me insane. Do you know how terrible this week was? I nearly broke my phone. I was ready to fight anyone who asked. I almost threw a  _ first year against a locker _ . Why would I not want to be around you when you make me so much better? When I’m with you, I’m a person who I almost don’t recognize. Do you know why? Because you make me better. You make me want to  _ be  _ better. And the thought of being able to have that for a weekend and then lose it made me ruin the entire thing by messing it all up! That night-”

Kyo took a deep breath and swallowed hard “- was probably the best night of my life. Because I got to spend it with you, making sure you were happy and you were safe. That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you, don’t you know that? And if it takes me never seeing you again because you don’t want to be around me, then I love you enough to let you go.”

“Of course I don’t want to leave!” Tohru protested. “I thought you hated pretending and that you couldn’t wait to get away fro-”

She paused, Kyo’s words finally sinking in. 

“You love me?” she asked quietly. 

“How could I not?”

Tohru threw her arms around him, pressing her face into his shirt as she started crying again, this time from relief. Mixed into her words were babbled and sometimes incoherent “I love you”s as she clung to him. In return, Kyo wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips to the top of her head. She knew that she could have stayed like this for the rest of the party and been perfectly happy.

But of course, the world didn’t work like that. 

“Oh lovely Tohru! Your cousin is here!” Shigure’s voice rang out as he stepped into the kitchen, eyeing the pair with glee. “Ah! Well, I’ll leave you two to it. Just, ah, don’t break anything.”

“Shigure,” Kyo ground out, “Get the hell out of here, and get your mind out of the goddamn gutter. Pervert.”

Pulling apart reluctantly, the pair grinned sheepishly at each other. It wasn’t as though this was the last time they would see each other or would be alone, and Tohru didn’t mind the interruption when she kept that in mind. Moving to stand beside him, Tohru linked her arm through his, squeezing it gently before sliding her hand down to twine her fingers with his. 

“Well, I should go say hi. Do you want to come with me?” she asked sheepishly. 

Kyo pressed another kiss to the top of her head. “Sure, and this time when she calls me your boyfriend, she won’t be lying.”


	19. Epilogue

“Kyo, we have mail!” Tohru’s voice rang out in the entryway to the house as she toed her shoes off.

It had been a long day at work, and while Tohru wanted nothing more than to cook a simple dinner and relax with her boyfriend (a year later it still amazed her that she could call him that), the envelope looked distinctly different than the mail they usually got. 

The sound of footsteps on the stairs caused her to look up, and she smiled as Kyo crossed the small distance between them to press a kiss to her lips before taking the envelope from her and opening it. After scanning the contents while Tohru dropped her bag and put on her slippers, Kyo let out a short laugh. 

“You’re never going to believe this,” he said with glee. 

Wrapping one arm around his waist, she tried to get a good look at the unusual envelope. There was something familiar about it, but Tohru wasn’t quick enough to place it before Kyo told her. 

“Haru and Rin are getting married. And we’re invited.”

At that,Tohru did laugh, descending into a fit of giggles that threatened to consume her in her tired state. “Well, I’m not surprised. Actually I am - I’m surprised they waited this long. Do you think we’ll actually get to dance at this wedding?”

Kyo looked down at her with fondness before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Of course we will. And no dancing with Yuki. He’ll probably step on your feet.”

“And spend even one song away from you? As if I could. We have a lot of dancing to make up for,” she teased him. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll spend the rest of my life making that up to you.”

Tohru looked up at him thoughtfully. “Well, in that case, maybe we should take dance lessons. Because I don’t remember ever saying if I was a good dancer or not.”

Kyo looked at her with alarm. “Seriously?”

Walking toward the kitchen, Tohru tried - and mostly failed - to contain her laughter. 

“Tohru, seriously? C’mon, tell me. Are you messing with me right now?” Kyo dropped the envelope and contents on the table, following her. 

“Guess you’ll have to find out!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god, we finally made it guys. There was angst. There was pining. There was pain. There were dense idiots in love. There was even a Yukeru kiss! And now we're at the end, and everything worked out well. Thank you for everyone who stuck with me through this, who encouraged me to finish this, and who listened to me ramble about things. A-bigail and FloralTohru, you two are amazing. 
> 
> This was my first large-scale fic that I've ever completed and it's such an amazing feeling to have done so. I look forward to sharing more writing with you all in the future, and hope you enjoyed the ride!


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